Living In The Moment
by jayfeather12345
Summary: A rogue who has no-one left to care for. A villain who cares for only one. A warrior who loves and is loved by many. And Ivypool, of course. Somehow, a love-square is developed, although all three toms want the same she-cat. Anyway, Ivypool embarks upon a journey to find her heart only to (probably) have it stolen. Plus the local she-rogues hate her. What could go wrong?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I own only the plot and the main character in this prologue (whose name I cannot reveal for purposes known only to me. Don't worry, it's not because I haven't actually named him yet... nope, nothing to do with me not having thought up a name for him yet at all.)

This story is set sometime after Ivypool and Dovewing become warriors in the Omen of the Stars series, and is before Ivypool listened to Dovewing and became a spy on the dark forest. This is just one of Ivypool's adventures... guess Dovewing doesn't know _everything_ about her sister.

Did I mention Ivypool falls in love? With three different cats, each with a completely different background, history and origin? No? Well, now I have.

Oh, yeah, I want to ask you to bear with me in the prologue. It's necessary to introduce my as of yet 'secretly named' main character. Ivypool enters the story in Chapter One.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Prologue**

When you have nobody left in the world to care for, and nobody who cares for you, you gotta live for yourself.

You can't let yourself drown in misery and regret or you'll become submerged so deep that even if the one you loved the most came back, you wouldn't listen to them, hear them or even see them. You would just... sink. Like a Twoleg in wet sand, you would _sink._

So that's what I do. I live life to the full. I pull pranks, steal prey, hiss at kittens, and fight dogs. Not to mention the she-cats. They fall for me like dominoes (dominoes are a Twoleg game. I remember I used to love chasing them as they fell with a 'clack' sound), one after the other. I'm not cruel; I don't just turn them away. I give them kittens to remember me by. That's all she-cats want, anyway -kittens. I even say hello every now and again, but the kittens annoy me... hence the hissing.

According to some of the toms, though, I'm heartless. They spit at me for giving a she-cat hope and then abandoning her (for some reason, the she-cats seem to have some sort of competition amongst themselves. I've heard it's something to do with every one of them thinking they will be the one to 'tame' me. Ha, I haven't been 'tame' in a long time).

When a cat asks me 'what's the point?', 'why do I do what I do?'... I tell them 'it's called living in the moment with no going back and no regrets'. They can't seem to understand this, but I point out that because I am happy and they are often sad it just goes to show that my way of thinking is obviously the right way.

I've been living here in this town for many moons now. I used to keep moving, never settling, but the Twoleg town where I currently reside has a rather interesting point in its favor. Four groups of cats who call themselves 'the four Clans' live around the nearby lake. It's a miracle they haven't yet been discovered by the Twolegs yet actually, and for that I admire them. However they are also a bit dim. Believing in StarClan, their 'Warrior ancestors'? Please, only a kitten would believe in something like that. They have many weird customs, and this 'code' they follow has procured my interest. I don't think I will be moving on any time soon.

It's time to live in the moment; it's time to have some _fun._

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**_Author's Note:_**I hope you liked it and are motivated to review *hint hint*!

But even if you hated it, reviews are appreciated. Really.


	2. Lost

**Disclaimer:** Warriors still doesn't belong to me :(

I hope you enjoy this chapter but even if you don't please review and tell me where I went wrong.

I also want to warn you that when you get to the rogue's point of view at the bottom, there is a change of tense, from past to present. This is intentional; it symbolizes ho he is living in the present and not dwelling on the past or future like most people/cats do. The normal point of veiw is in past tense.

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**Chapter One**

**~ Lost ~**

**Normal POV**

Ivypool shivered and fluffed up her fur. She had been walking for quite some time now and her paws were aching. _Mousebrained Dovewing and her know-it-all airs. Mousebrained Firestar and Lionblaze with their special treatment of her. Mousebrains, mousebrains, mousebrains!_ Ivypool cursed, every paw step thudding dully on the hollow-sounding ground. She didn't care if the earth collapsed – at least she wouldn't have to go back to ThunderClan. Maybe Hawkfrost would come and get her, and bring her home to the Dark forest. _Yes, that's my real home. The Dark Forest. At least they treat me like an equal._

A few foxlengths ahead of her lay the Thunderpath she would need to cross in order to reach the Twolegplace, which was where she was planning to spend the night. An icy gust of wind made Ivypool shiver again.

*ROOOOAAAAAR* Ivypool flinched as a monster zoomed along the Thunderpath, splashing her with dirty water as it raced through a puddle to the side of the Thunderpath. _Maybe I'll cross the Thunderpath tomorrow... No. I will cross it now. Hawkfrost didn't spend all that time training me just for me to end up a coward,_ she thought firmly, her ears flattening as she remembered her last session with the Dark Forest warrior. He had pushed her to her limit, but eventually she ended up on top (Ivypool knew her victory had had nothing to do with Hawkfrost tripping on a root when he backed her up against a tree. Nope, it was her own skill that brought her a victory...)

Anyway, Hawkfrost had realized there was something bothering Ivypool and when she told him, instead of growling at her for acting like a mewling kit like she had expected him to, he had touched his muzzle to her ear and told her everything would work out as long as she remained strong.

Ivypool sighed heavily. She had decided she needed some time alone with her thoughts, away from her sister, the Clan and the Dark Forest, so here she was – soaking wet and stinking of Thunderpath. Forcing her legs to move forward, Ivypool limped across the Thunderpath when there was a long lull in the stream of monsters.

"Ah," Ivypool gasped when she reached the other side and placed her paw on the ground. "Fox dung," she snarled, realizing she had some grit caught in her pad. Focused on trying to lick her pad better, she didn't hear the rogue approaching until he spoke.

"Now, what would a pretty young cat like you be using such language for?" meowed a rough-edged voice.

Ivypool's head shot up and her blue-eyed glare met the curious, amber-eyed stare of a large, overgrown, dirty ginger tom cat. "None of your business," Ivypool snapped, her temper worn thin by her travelling and the pain from the grit in her pad made her irritable.

For a moment both cats, one slightly built with silver and white fur, the other heavily built with dirty ginger fur, were bathed in the harsh yellow light from a Monster as it flashed past.

"You're on my territory. That makes it my business," the tom replied in a casual tone.

Ivypool almost choked on disbelief. "_Your_ territory? Sure, and I'm a horse," she retorted, jumping forwards suddenly when another monster roared by. The ginger tom didn't even flinch, his eyes filling with amusement.

"As much as I'd like to stay here by the Thunderpath and argue it out, don't you think it would be better if we were warm and dry before continuing?" he suggested.

Ivypool widened her eyes. He must be joking if he thought she would follow him anywhere. "In your dreams," she growled.

The ginger tom tipped his head onto one side. "You're by yourself, soaking wet, limping and obviously worn out. You sure you don't want to get warm and dry?" he offered again, apprising her with his eyes.

_He has a point, and I suppose I have nowhere else to go, so_... "Fine, but if this is a trap then I'll kill you," Ivypool relented. Even if it was a trap, it wasn't like she was defenseless. Besides, she wouldn't last long if she refused his offer anyway. What did she have to lose?

"I thought you'd see it my way. Follow me," the tom turned around and padded back in the direction he had come from.

"I don't see it your way, I just know my limits and staying out here any longer would definitely be outside my limits," Ivypool corrected him, limping as fast as she could to catch him up.

* * *

"Here we are. Welcome to my den," the ginger tom swept his tail around in an arc, indicating the whole of the abandoned Monster den.

"It's draughty and I can hardly see anything," Ivypool complained, her limping much more pronounced as she made her way over to a pile of straw in a corner.

The ginger tom rolled his eyes. "There's no pleasing some cats." Following her, he settled down about a tail length away from her, his eyes fixed on hers. "Let's start with names. What are you called?"

Ivypool began licking her paw, trying to clean out the grit. "You first," she mumbled around her paw.

"Nuh-uh, I'm the host, you first," the tom said patronizingly, like Ivypool was a kit.

Ivypool glared at him. "No way, rogue. Unless you want me to call you that," she smiled at him, mirroring his patronizing expression even though he was clearly older than her.

The ginger tom shrugged. "All right, call me Rogue. No one round here knows my real name anyway, they all just call me Ginger. Rogue will be a refreshing change," he paused and added with a glint his eye, "as long as I can make up a name for you."

Ivypool paused mid-lick and stared at him like he was mad. "Fair enough, but you do realize that rogue's are hated by the... by most cats, right?" she managed to correct herself quickly, but she saw the interested gleam in his eye and inwardly berated herself. He knew what she had been about to say.

"A Clan cat, hey? I think I have the perfect name for you," Rogue grinned slightly maliciously. "How about Queen?"

"Queen?" Ivypool repeated, confused.

"Yeah, 'Queen' is the name for she-cats nursing kits in the Clans, isn't it?" Rogue explained, watching her closely. Recognition flashed in Ivypool's eyes.

"Yes, but it is not, never has been and never will be _my_ title," Ivypool replied tightly, beginning to lick her paw more vigorously.

Rogue curled his thick tail around his paws. "Are you sure it never will be?" he purred.

This time, Ivypool froze in disgust. "You're disgusting, you know that?" she hissed. Her eyes narrowed to slits of ice.

Rogue grinned at her. "I'll take that as my cue to say goodnight. See you in the morning," he said pleasantly and padded over to the other corner without glancing over at Ivypool once.

Left pretty much by herself again, Ivypool curled up on the straw and closed her eyes miserably. She felt like a sewage rat with her still sodden fur, muddy paws and knotted pelt. She felt physically drained from moons of restless nights and was beginning to lose hope. She was stuck with a maniac rogue in an abandoned Twoleg nest with nowhere to go. If her Clanmates saw her now, they would probably disown her for behaving like a Mousebrained kittypet. Sighing, she reflected that at least she was dry and was beginning to warm up.

* * *

When Ivypool opened her eyes the next morning she stretched and yawned, feeling much better than she had the previous night. It had been the first relaxing, dreamless sleep she had had in a while. Sitting up, she noticed the sunlight streaming in through the entrance to the Monster den, giving the whole place a warm but strange glow. Still, Ivypool wasn't complaining.

Glancing around she saw no sign of Rogue anywhere, and half thought she had dreamed him. She had been half asleep last night, after all. Feeling much happier, she set about giving herself a good, thorough wash until her fur was fluffy again and shone prettily in the sunlight. When she tested her paw, she found that it didn't hurt nearly as much and thought that maybe there had never been any grit stuck in it, she had probably just scraped it.

"This place isn't half bad. I could imagine staying here for a while, at least until I can decide what I'm going to do next," Ivypool murmured to herself, wandering around the den and sniffing at a few strange Twoleg objects curiously. Her rumbling stomach reminded her that she hadn't eaten for nearly two days and she groaned. "The only thing missing is a decent meal," she muttered.

The sound of pawsteps approaching alerted Ivypool just before Rogue's head appeared in the entrance. Ivypool drew in a breath when she saw him properly in the sunlight for the first time.

He was heavily built with lots of muscles but not in the least bit fat. His powerful shoulders rippled with strength as he walked towards her and the sun danced off his bright ginger pelt giving it a handsome finish, and his face, framed by soft fur, was well-shaped and noble-looking. He had several scars, Ivypool noticed: a deep v-cut in his left ear, three scratch marks on his right cheek, barely missing his eye, and a long, thin scar stretching from his shoulder to his hind leg where the fur had barely grown back. But the scars added to his appearance, giving him the air of a seasoned yet handsome warrior.

However, it was what Rogue carried in his mouth that really drew Ivypool's attention. He carried a fat, juicy-looking rabbit.

Seeing her gazing at him, Rogue dropped the rabbit and grinned at her. "Like what you see?"

Ignoring him, Ivypool darted forward and snatched up the rabbit, dropping it a tail length away and placing her paw on it to claim it as hers. "Definitely," she nodded, her eyes fixed on the rabbit in awe. She would never tell him this, but the rabbit was extremely heavy, and so to carry it from wherever he caught it back here was quite a feat.

"Eh, I didn't mean the rabbit..." Rogue muttered.

Ivypool smiled sweetly at him. "I know. Thanks for the rabbit, you shouldn't have got it just for me," she added cheekily.

Rogue shook his head. "Honestly, she-cats! One moment they'll bite your head off and the next they're in the mood to play," he tutted.

Ivypool glanced at her paws. "I want to apologize for how I acted last night. I wasn't in the best of moods, so thank you for letting me stay the night here."

"Nah, that's okay. What's life without a few moody queens?" Rogue joked.

Ivypool, ignoring him, started eating the rabbit as fast as she could. When she was full and there was still a lot left, she finally looked back up at him. "Thanks. For the rabbit, I mean. But I am not letting you call me Queen."

"Why? Are you going to give me your real name then?" Rogue asked.

Ivypool stood and began padding towards the entrance. "No chance," she said over her shoulder. "Thanks again for letting me stay."

Rogue bounded ahead of her, blocking her path. "Hey, where are you going?"

Ivypool glared up at him. "Please move," she said as politely as she could manage.

"No. Where are you going?" Rogue pressed.

Ivypool sighed. "I don't know. Now will you move?"

Rogue held her stare. "Why not stay her a while longer until you decide where you're going next," he offered, unaware he was echoing her earlier thoughts.

Ivypool blinked. "I couldn't possibly intrude any longer," she mewed firmly, her voice becoming more polite the more annoyed she got.

"You're a Clan cat, you won't last five minutes in the Twolegplace on your own. What's wrong with staying here to get your bearings, at least?" Rogue pressed.

Realization hit Ivypool like hail in summer. "You're lonely," she guessed, her eyes wide.

"No, I just..." Rogue protested.

"That's why you let me stay last night. You were lonely."

"Fine," Rogue growled. "I was lonely. Go if you want." He stepped aside but Ivypool didn't move.

"I think I'll stay after all. We're both lost, and in need of companionship," Ivypool decided.

"Whoa," Rogue raised his tail. "Lost? I know exactly where I am, thank you very much."

Ivypool gazed at him for a heartbeat. "I don't think you do," she whispered. "Now, are you going to show me the territory or are we going to sit here arguing like two elders all day long?" she added in a more confident voice, trotting out of the entrance with her tail held high.

Rogue stared after her, confused. Her words had pierced his inner shell, something which no other cat could do. Thinking he was going to regret it later, he rose to his paws and followed the pretty white-and-silver she-cat almost unconsciously.

* * *

**Rogue's POV**

The sun's rays are setting as we finally come to a halt on top of a brick wall bordering a Twoleg garden. After the she-cat's probing of my feelings this morning, she became quite quiet as I lead her round the Twolegplace, but seemed to cheer up when I started showing her some of the great sights you can see from tall buildings if you climb all the way to the top.

"Hey, Rogue?" she (I still haven't come up with a name for her – not one that she like,s anyway) asks me from where she is relaxing slightly further down the wall. She still doesn't trust me, and won't let us get too close. Strange cat. Most she-cats would kill for a chance to get closer to me. I guess I'll have to try harder to ensnare her. I'm not sure why I want her all of a sudden, but I guess no she-cat has ever resisted me before and I like a challenge.

"Yeah?" I answer, looking up at her. The sun reflects off her fur making it shine and her eyes glimmer like beautiful snowballs.

"Have you always been a rogue?"

I laugh as she gives me a confused look. "No. Not always. What about you, have you always been a Clan cat?" I ask.

She nods. "Yes. But you've lived here for a long time, right?"

"I suppose," I meow lazily, basking in the last of the sun's warm rays.

"So you know every cat around here?"

I sit up slowly. "Is there any point to these questions?"

She blinks. "There's a gray tabby she-cat down there glaring hatefully at me," was her simple answer.

I glance down into the garden and heave a sigh. "Mauble."

"You don't sound too happy," she noted.

Mauble chooses this moment to but in to our conversation. "Ginger! How good it is to see you after so long! Where have you been these past few moons?" she calls up in a silky smooth voice. "Won't you come down and greet me properly?"

I glance at my female companion, who gives me an amused look. "She's very pretty," she commented teasingly.

"Shut up," I mutter at her, before jumping off the wall and landing on my paws neatly. She follows me, landing with a grace I hadn't even suspected she had.

"Mauble," is all I can say before she throws herself at me, purring.

"I missed you, Ginger," she mews loudly in my ear. I glance subtly at my latest female companion to see a look of amusement on her face. Right, that's it. I will not let myself become an object to laugh at.

"Whatever, Mauble," I say with a shrug, shoving her away. "I'm busy right now, showing my companion the territory."

"Wh-what?" Her plain gray eyes become pools of unhappiness. "But what about me? And your kittens? You can't abandon them again!" she wails desperately.

"Get a grip, Mauble. We. Are. Over. You just weren't right for me," I say harshly, spinning around.

"How... how could you just leave me for her?" Mauble's voice fills with meaningless, shocked despair.

"She's prettier than you," I shrug. "Anyway, I'll see you later. Might even drop in on the kittens," I say, bored. Like that's going to happen.

"We'll see about that," Mauble hisses, directing her vengeful glare towards my female companion. "Bet you won't find her so pretty with her face ripped off!"

I glance at my companion, surprised to see rage in her eyes. "Just because a cat's face is disfigured, it doesn't mean they aren't beautiful!" she hisses. Hmm... the comment meant something personal to her, and somehow I don't think it's just because she's worried about her face.

I sit down just as Mauble springs at my female companion. Mauble is a kittypet but she has a temper and, though her moves are undefined and often clumsy and not in the least anything for a seasoned fighter to worry about, her raw rage lends her power and she can potentially be dangerous.

But my female companion dodges Mauble easily, whipping around extremely fast and sinking her claws into Mauble's pelt. This is going to be interesting.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Chapter One is now finished! Phew!

Foxleap will make an appearance next chapter :)

Like I said above, please review!


	3. A Name for Ivypool

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Warriors, only Rogue and the plot line.

Thanks to Dawnstar2710 and Silverstorm13 for your reviews and support!

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**~ A Name for Ivypool ~**

**ThunderClan Camp**

Foxleap padded into camp with two mice dangling from his jaws. He had been on an early hunting patrol with his sister, Icecloud. As they trotted into camp, a scene of chaos met their eyes. All the cats of ThunderClan were milling restlessly in the clearing, their pelts merging into a sea of ever-shifting colour, and every cat speaking at once.

"What's going on?" Icecloud mumbled around her squirrel. Foxleap shrugged.

"Let's find out, come on!" Foxleap bounded forward and dumped his prey on the fresh kill pile. "Hey, Mousewhisker!" he called to his Clanmate. "What's happening?"

The gray-and-white tom padded over to him and Icecloud. "Ivypool's missing," he meowed ominously. "She was last seen yesterday morning by her sister but Dovewing hasn't seen her since."

"Oh no! Does anyone know what happen to her?" Icecloud gasped, her eyes wide.

Mousewhisker shook his head, raising his voice over the noise so the other two could hear him. "Some cats think Sol abducted her," he snorted. "As if." Foxleap remembered Mousewhisker was a down-to-earth cat, not likely to believe in wild stories. "Other cats think WindClan caught her hunting on the border. They caught her on their territory once before but they returned her because she was an apprentice. Now she's a warrior, they might be keeping her prisoner..." Mousewhisker continued, his eyes darkening. "And some other mousebrained cats like my brother," he shot a look across the clearing at Berrynose who was having a heated conversation with Spiderleg, "think some ShadowClan warriors trekked all the way across our territory, undetected, and have taken her hostage."

"Oh, poor Ivypool!" Icecloud mewed, distressed. "I'm going to find Dovewing," she said and slipped away, disappearing among the throng of cats.

Foxleap stared at Mousewhisker. He had been friends with Ivypool and to hear of her disappearance was shocking. "What do you think happened to her?" he asked.

Mousewhisker flicked his tail. "The WindClan theory seems most likely to me, but personally I wouldn't put it past Ivypool to have discovered some hollow in the ground and have fallen asleep there," he shrugged, but his eyes portrayed worry.

"Where's Firestar? Surely he should be doing something about this?" the reddish tabby tom swept his tail in an arc, indicating the cat-filled camp.

Mousewhisker nodded. "I think he went out with Sandstorm like they sometimes do and he's not back yet. Wait, that's him now," the white-and-gray tom looked over Foxleap's shoulder at the entrance to camp, where one bright ginger tom and one paler ginger she-cat were emerging.

Foxleap watched as Firestar's eyes widened in surprise at the sight which met him. His jaws opened and Foxleap guessed he was trying to stop the commotion but no cat was paying attention. Firestar ran towards the high rock and bounded up it.

"QQQQQQQQUUUUUUUUUUUUUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE EEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" the flame-pelted tom yowled. Foxleap winced, pawing at his ears. When the noise had died down and every cat was staring up at Firestar, the ThunderClan leader spoke in his normal voice. "Would some cat please tell me what is going on?" Immediately voices began speaking all at once again.

"Ivypool's missing!" Foxleap tried to call to Firestar but the flame coloured tom seemed not to hear him.

"Enough! One at a time. Dustpelt, you tell me," Firestar ordered one of his most senior warriors.

The dusky brown tom dipped his head. "Yesterday morning, Ivypool went hunting. She never came back. Dovewing noticed when she woke up that Ivypool's nest hadn't been slept in," he reported.

"Thank you," Firestar nodded to the senior warrior. His gaze searched the clearing until he found what he was looking for. "Dovewing, why didn't you notice last night that Ivypool wasn't in camp?"

Foxleap rose on his hind legs to catch a glimpse of Dovewing; the gray she-cat was trembling and her eyes wide with distress. He felt sorry for her, wondering how it would feel if Icecloud went missing.

"W-well, I went to my nest early last night because I was on the dawn patrol and so I didn't expect Ivypool to join me so soon. This morning when I woke she was gone and her nest was cold, like Dustpelt said, it hadn't been slept in. I tried to follow her trail, but it... it..." Dovewing trailed off and her old mentor, Lionblaze, rested his tail on her shoulders.

"Her trial vanished near the WindClan border," Lionblaze finished for his former apprentice.

Firestar nodded thoughtfully as cries of 'WindClan stole her!', 'Sol's come back, he came through WindClan before and now he's done it again!', and 'ShadowClan took her hostage!' broke out all over the clearing until Firestar waved his tail for quiet.

"We mustn't blame WindClan or anyone else without proof. Ivypool may well have crossed the border of her own accord. I will send a patrol to WindClan and if she is not there then I give them permission to follow her scent trail to wherever it leads. This may prove dangerous, if she has gone beyond Clan territory," Firestar announced.

"I want to be on the patrol, she's my daughter," Whitewing addressed Firestar firmly. The flame coloured leader dipped his head.

"Of course, but I want Birchfall to stay here."

"What? Ivypool is my daughter too!" Birchfall protested.

"Your other daughter needs you here. Brambleclaw will lead the patrol and joining him and Whitewing will be Rosepetal, Cloudtail, and... Foxleap. Graystripe will stand in a_s _deputy in Brambleclaw's absence. You can leave immediately," the ThunderClan leader finished and jumped off the high rock.

Foxleap's breathing quickened. He was going on a journey! His paws tingling with excitement, he trotted towards where Brambleclaw was gathering the cats for the patrol, only to stop when Icecloud beckoned him over from where she was sitting with Dovewing.

"Isn't it great? I get to go on a journey! We have to go to WindClan first, and if they have her then we can fight it out –we'll win, of course – but if she's not there then we can explore the land beyond the Clans!" Foxleap exclaimed as he reached them, his eyes shining. To his surprise, his sister glared at him.

"Don't worry Dovewing, they'll find Ivypool," Icecloud said soothingly to Dovewing, stroking her tail gently over the younger cat's shoulders. _Oops_, Foxleap thought as he saw the state of Dovewing.

"I should be going on that patrol! Why didn't Firestar say me?" she cried, and fixed her blue eyes on Foxleap's mossy green ones. "Please Foxleap, promise me you'll find her and brink her back," she whispered.

"Err..." Foxleap murmured uncomfortably, not used to dealing with upset she-cats. With another glare from Icecloud, he blinked. "Of course we'll find her!" he said enthusiastically. "Don't worry, she's a strong cat, she'll be fine wherever she is," he added confidently.

"Foxleap, Jayfeather has your travelling herbs!" Brambleclaw called.

"Gotta go. By Dovewing, Icecloud!" Foxleap grinned.

"Thanks Foxleap. Goodbye, and please bring her back safe," Dovewing tried to smile as he bounded away, but Icecloud followed him.

"Hey, Foxleap, wait," she called.

"Yeah?"

"Be careful," his sister nuzzled him briefly. "I don't want to lose you."

"I'll be fine," Foxleap touched his muzzle to Icecloud's cheek as Brambleclaw yowled for him again. "See you when we get back with Ivypool!"

* * *

**Twolegplace**

Ivypool clawed Mauble as hard as she could, feeling satisfied when blood spurted out from the wound and Mauble screeched in pain. _This is what Hawkfrost was training me for. This is what I'm supposed to do,_ she thought with a strange sense of happiness.

"Leave... Ginger... alone..." Mauble panted, her eyes glowing rage as she lunged for Ivypool's leg.

_This is too easy_, Ivypool swished her blood-covered paw through the air and it connected with the other cat's cheek before Mauble could bite down. Mauble was sent sprawling over the grassy ground. "You're not my leader, I don't answer to you," she growled, feeling alive as her blood rushed around her body, not a drop having yet been spilled. "Give up yet?" she taunted, stepping closer to Mauble threateningly. As she glared triumphantly down at the gray tabby, she bared her blood-stained teeth.

Mauble shrieked. "Ginger, help me!"

They both glanced over at 'Ginger'. He just shrugged. "Not my fight. I only fight worthy opponents," he explained. When Ivypool heard this she jumped over to him.

"What did you say?" she hissed. Before Rogue could answer she spotted Mauble trying to creep away. Whisking around, she leered at the tabby she-cat. "That's it, run like a coward!" she jeered. "Never cross my path again if you know what's good for you!"

"You know, I've thought of a name for you," Rogue commented as Ivypool's head whipped back around. The battle glow from her eyes was fading and she regained control of her breathing as her fur began to lay flat again. Now she was no longer in battle, Ivypool's thoughts cleared.

"Oh?" she asked, deciding to ignore his earlier comment. "What makes you think I'm going to stay with you if all your little she-cats want to attack me every time they see me?"

Rogue blinked, his lips curling up in a smile. "Because to leave now would be like saying they win, and you'll leave me alone."

Ivypool narrowed her eyes. "I don't want _you_," she informed him. "But I do want a place to stay and you're right, I would never give in to foxhearts like Mauble."

"Exactly. So, since you won't give me your real name, I will call you Warrior. Your fighting just now proved the Clans aren't completely useless at teaching their cats to fight and you certainly look with a warrior, covered in blood," Rogue told her.

Ivypool's eyes widened. "Oh, StarClan. Is there a pool of water I can wash myself in?" she asked Rogue, suddenly realised that her claws were so clotted with blood and fur that she couldn't sheath them and that her fur was drying clumpy and matted.

"You're from that water Clan that likes to swim?" Rogue frowned.

Ivypool shook her head. "I'm a ThunderClan cat through and through," she said, but the words felt almost like lies in her mouth. She was a Dark Forest cat as well as belonging to ThunderClan. "I just don't fancy licking this blood off."

Rogue nodded. "Fair enough. Follow me."

* * *

**Rouge's POV**

As I lead Warrior through the lengthening shadows towards a rather deep but fairly clean puddle I know of, I reflect that she's actually not a bad fighter. Granted, she's been trained, but I've seen some Clan cats fighting before and something tells me she could beat them all paws down. She certainly has a talent for fighting. Maybe she's even as good as I am? No, no-one can beat me. But I bet she would come the closest of anyone to defeating me.

When we reach the puddle, Warrior throws herself at it, creating a rather large splash that I just manage to doge. "Hey," I growl, but she seems not to hear me, immersed in cleansing herself.

"Burr, that was cold," Warrior shakes herself as she climbs out of the water.

"You asked for it," I remind her.

"I guess. So are we going back to your den now?" Warrior asks, beginning to pad back the way we came. I'll be impressed if she can remember it.

"Going back? You're kidding, night time is when the fun begins," I meow, anticipation filling my voice.

"Eh –what?" Warrior seems shocked.

"If you can't handle that, I'll take you back to the den," I shrug, knowing I've got her caught.

"Since you can't seem to handle being without my company, then sure I'll come and kitsit you while you mess around doing whatever you tom cats need to do. Just don't expect me to hold back if we come across another of your she-cats," Warrior warns me.

"Meh," I mutter. Warrior's too clever for her own good. I stretch and say, "Come on, it's time to show you just how fun living in the Twolegplace can be."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Please review and tell me what you thought :)

There *might* be some slight hints of romance next chapter, but you'll have to keep reading to find out!

Oh, and if any of you are confused, 'kitsit' is like the equivalent of 'babysit'. I just wanted to make it more authentic.


	4. Never Alone

**Disclaimer:** I own only Rogue and the plot. The rest is Erin Hunter's - Rogue isn't that bad a consolation prize though.

I want to thank Sarnia Oblivion and unicorns-are-fluffy for pointing out a mistake I made earlier when I accidentally copied and pasted the whole chapter in the middle of the original chapter. I've now corrected that mistake thanks to them.

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**~ Never Alone ~**

**Normal POV – with Foxleap**

"Why is it that every time a cat strays a single paw step away from your camp that ThunderClan blames WindClan?" Onestar hissed down from his perch on a boulder at the group of warriors previously chosen by Firestar to ask WindClan if they had seen Ivypool.

"Hey, that's not fair! We never come to you unless we have to," Foxleap yowled back angrily amid hisses from the WindClan warriors scattered around the clearing. Brambleclaw gave him a warning glance before looking back up at the WindClan leader.

"Ivypool's trail lead us to your border; Firestar was simply enquiring as to whether you have seen her," Brambleclaw meowed in a calm voice, attempting to placate Onestar. Foxleap noticed that Brambleclaw was flexing his paws against the ground, showing how tense and angry the ThunderClan really deputy was.

"For the last time, WindClan has not seen, heard or smelled any of your ThunderClan stink. Tell Firestar that the next time you cross our borders outside of the gathering truce, we shall not hesitate to attack you," Onestar warned, jumping off the boulder. "Ashfoot, show them the border," he ordered his deputy before stalking away.

Foxleap felt a growl rising in his throat. Onestar didn't need to be so rude.

"Don't let him get to you," Rosepetal leaned over to Foxleap and breathed in his ear. "Ivypool isn't here, so that means we can look outside Clan territories for her," she added happily. "I feel bad for Ivypool of course, but isn't it exciting?" she chattered.

"Foxleap, Rosepetal, hurry up," Whitewing called over her shoulder at the two warriors as she followed Brambleclaw out of camp.

Foxleap nodded to Rosepetal and they hurried to catch up. "You're right, but Onestar's still a piece of Mousedung. I can't wait to go and explore outside the Clan territories. Come on, let's go and ask Brambleclaw where we're going next!"

"Hey, Brambleclaw, are we going back to report to Firestar or-" Rosepetal began as the two young warriors caught up with their deputy, who was walking next to Ashfoot.

Brambleclaw stopped and turned round to fix them with a glare. "If you two had been paying any attention, you would know that Ashfoot has just been telling us where to look next," he told them.

"Oh," Foxleap blinked.

The gray WindClan deputy smiled. "A sunrise or so ago one of our warriors, Whitetail, saw a silver-and-white cat heading in the direction of the horseplace, and though she caught a faint whiff of ThunderClan scent the cat was well within two foxlengths of the lake and didn't seem to mean any harm. Whitetail didn't recognise the cat from so far away but it could well have been Ivypool. Whitetail followed her just to be sure she wasn't up to any trouble but when the cat reached the horseplace Whitetail came back to camp," she explained. "Onestar was told of this but I am afraid he is letting his... anger... towards your Clan cloud his judgement."

"Thank you, Ashfoot," Brambleclaw dipped his head. "We should go and visit the horseplace."

"Of course. I wish you luck," she meowed as Brambleclaw lead his cats over the peaty earth towards the horseplace.

* * *

**The Twolegplace**

Ivypool followed Rogue obediently as he led her through the twisting paths of the Twolegplace to what seemed like a huge, abandoned warehouse. "Don't the Twolegs need any of these nests? There are a lot of empty ones," she commented as they padded towards it. It was at the end of a dark street, but artificial light spilled out of the half open door. There were no holes higher up like in most Twoleg nests.

Rogue glanced at her. His amber eyes glowed in slight annoyance. "You really don't know anything about Twolegs, do you?"

Ivypool glared back. "Clan cats can look after ourselves, we don't need Twolegs to put food in front of our noses and pet us every other second," she replied tartly.

"You think that's what happens to me? I caught all the prey you've eaten since arriving here, and there's no Twoleg in my abandoned Twoleg den to pet me whenever I want," Rogue meowed sharply, his paw steps faltering.

Ivypool slowed as well. "So you admit it, that's what you want to happen!" she exclaimed teasingly.

"What?" Rogue narrowed his eyes. And then he laughed. "Oh, in the darkness I forgot you were a she-cat, Warrior. Of course you wouldn't understand. Silly me." He began walking again, but before he reached the large warehouse, Ivypool caught his tail between her teeth.

"What did you say?" she growled as he jerked around, amber eyes flashing.

_Don't let him speak to you like this,_ a familiar yet strange cat whispered in Ivypool's ear. She whipped around but saw only the shadows of the street. Twitching an ear, she turned back to Rogue.

"You're nothing but a dumb she-cat whose best – or should I say only? – skill is asking pointless questions," Rogue said coldly. "Oh, and getting lost."

Ivypool couldn't believe the nerve of this tom! "I don't believe this. If I'm not treated unfairly because I have a star of a sister then it's because of another thing that's out of my control – my gender. When will you thick toms get it into your heads that I am just as good as every other cat?!" she yowled.

Rogue's attention had been diverted the moment Ivypool mentioned a sister. "Is she pretty like you?" he asked eagerly, his previous anger forgotten.

Ivypool scowled. "Someday, you'll get what's coming to you," she hissed, half wanting to teach him a lesson with her claws. _That's it, teach him who's really the powerful one. Show him what you can do_, the voice whispered again. Ivypool frowned. The voice was definitely some cat she knew, but who? She growled in frustration as she tried to remember.

"Hey, you two, keep it down or you'll alert the Twolegs to our head quarters!" A commanding voice called from inside the nest. Both Ivypool and Rogue turned to see a tom, slightly smaller than Rogue but still bigger than Ivypool, slip out of the nest. His fur was a dark, matted gray and his eyes were a dull green that sparked in surprise when he saw Rogue. "G-ginger! Sorry, I didn't know it was you," he apologised in shock.

Rogue looked at the other cat. "Actually, I'm changing my name. Ginger sounds like a housecat. I want to be known as Rogue now. It sounds much fiercer, don't you think, Scuttle?"

Scuttle, over his immediate shock, gave a chuckle. "That it does, Ging - er, Rogue. I'll tell the others. But who's your pretty companion?" he grinned at Ivypool and she recoiled as she caught a whiff of his breath.

"Phaw!" she gagged.

"Eh? Oh, this is Warrior. She's staying with me for a while," Rogue shrugged.

"Oh? It will be lovely to meet her properly... come inside, come inside," Scuttle beckoned them with his tail and Rogue followed him closely, but Ivypool hesitated. What kind of place was the Twolegplace if all the toms looked down on the she-cats? Finally she sighed and followed them in. She had nothing to lose by going in...

_Actually, you could lose your life,_ the voice told her.

_Whatever! Like I said, I have nothing to lose. If I die, I'll just go to StarClan anyway_, Ivypool argued silently.

_We'll see..._ was the voice's reply.

Ivypool had to blink several times at the brightness when she entered the nest to stand beside Rogue, but when she could see clearly again the sight surprised her. There were more cats here than she had ever seen in one place before, except maybe for Gatherings. They all seemed to be involved in something, whether it was sleeping, play fighting, chasing, eating, chatting, or something else. "Wow, there are so many cats!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Rogue glanced briefly at her. "Yeah. This is where all the 'rogues' as you call us, gather. A lot of them live here, but not all because otherwise fights for food and things would be raging constantly. Most of us have no secure home, but we move each moon. Actually, when cats first started gathering here, it was just a few of us, but cats from other Twolegplaces soon joined us."

"Wow," Ivypool repeated. "Hey, where are you going?" she called as Rogue padded away.

"I have a little matter to settle with Sacky. Don't worry, Scuttle'll look after you," Rogue replied over his shoulder.

Ivypool turned to Scuttle in confusion. "Who's Sacky?"

Scuttle gave a wheezing laugh. "Sacky is Gi- Rogue's rival in pretty much everything. Half a moon ago, Sacky beat Rogue in a fight and Rogue hasn't come back until now," he replied. "I'm guessing he wants a rematch.

Ivypool scoffed. "A cat beat Rogue? I've never seen him fight, but I'm pretty sure he's not easy to beat," she meowed.

Scuttle shrugged. "I don't want to talk about Rogue. I want to know about you. How'd you meet Rogue? Come on, I'll show you to some of the others."

"Rogue found me by the Thunderpath. That's all you need to know," Ivypool told him firmly.

"My, you're a mysterious one, aren't you," Scuttle commented, leading her towards a group of cats who were just chatting over to one side. Ivypool skirted a couple of wrestling cats and had to jump out of the way when three cats dashed past her. It was so fast she wasn't sure who was chasing who.

"Hey, guys, I've brought a newbie. She's staying with Ginger – who has changed his name again, this time to Rogue - at the moment and her name's Warrior. Look after her will you, I need to find Flow," Scuttle told the cats and promptly left. Ivypool stared at the six cats all staring back at her.

A tom with a brown tabby pelt spoke first. He was lying in a relaxed position and his tail flicked comfortably. "Well, I'm Stripes, you can see why. This is Mouse, Kitsy, Takko, Hunnie and Purrlow."

Ivypool noticed two things as each cat was introduced. Firstly, the three she-cats, Kitsy, Hunnie and Purrlow, were all lying close to a tom cat, and secondly, Stripes was staring at her and making her feel uncomfortable. "Nice to meet you, I guess," she meowed, slightly confused as to why Rogue had brought her here in the first place.

"Warrior's a rough name for a kitty," Stripes commented. "How'd you come by that name?"

Ivypool grinned. "Rogue gave it to me after he saw me fight," she said, noticing his eyes widen in surprise.

"Is that so? Well, it doesn't surprise me that Rogue just let you fight. He never was one for looking after she-cats," Stripes replied casually. The she-cat lying with her head on his stomach lifted her head. Ivypool thought it was Kitsy.

"Too right," Kitsy muttered.

Stripes ignored her, his gaze focused on Ivypool. "How about coming to stay with a tom who will take proper care of you?" he offered with a confident grin.

Ivypool stared at him. "No thanks, I don't need anyone to take care of me," she told him firmly.

"Oooh, feisty, aren't you?" Stripes purred, standing up and stretching, his claws making a scratchy noise on the cool floor.

"I'll show you feisty," Ivypool muttered. _Firestar always teaches us that a battle is no way to resolve anything, but I think Hawkfrost is right. Sometimes, a fight is the only way_, she thought to herself. "Fight me if you think you can win," she challenged. "If you win, I'll come and stay with you. If I win, however, you'll treat me as an equal."

Stripes shrugged, obviously thinking that Ivypool would not be hard to beat. "I see Rogue has already been teaching you our ways. Very well, I accept your challenge." The rest of the cats rose to their paws and formed a large circle around Stripes and Ivypool. With no warning, Stripes leapt, bowling Ivypool over as he took her by surprise.

_Quick, wind him with your hind legs!_ A hiss in Ivypool's ear made her react instinctively. She brought her hind legs close to her stomach and then kicked upwards as hard as she could. Stripes was thrown sideways gasping for breath and Ivypool wasted no time, boxing his ears with sheathed but still hard paws.

_Show no mercy! Don't let him think you're soft,_ the voice in her ear growled. _Unsheathe your claws!_

Ivypool hesitated and in that moment, Stripes slashed at her shoulder. Pain seared through her and blood splattered the ground. Ivypool hesitated no more. She unsheathed her claws.

* * *

**Rogue's POV**

"Please... no..." Sacky pleads from underneath me as I press my claws to his throat.

"You will do well to remember that I am the top cat around here," I growl, and hold him still for a moment more before letting him up. Stepping back, I clean the blood off my claws but I ignore the scratch marks on my flank. I can't show weakness.

Sacky scrambles away and I hear my old name being called. "Ginger, Ginger!"

"It's Rogue now," I tell the dirty white tom who has just dashed up to me.

"Rogue, then – the new cat's fighting Stripes and winning!" The dirty white tom who I remember is called Snowy pants. I stare at him for a second and then burst out laughing.

"That's a good one!" I shake my head in mirth. "Warrior, beating Stripes!"

"It's true, come and see!" Snowy insists. Well, I may as well go and have a look. So I follow him over to a large group of gathered cats. Pushing my way to the front, I gasp at what I see. Scratch and bite marks lace Stripes' body as he tries in vain to push Warrior away. I look at Warrior carefully. Only one bleeding scratch decorated her otherwise clear fur.

"No way," I breath, my heart speeding up. As Warrior moved gracefully, linking a range of different battle moves I've never seen before, I appreciate her beauty for the first time. Maybe she is only a she-cat, but she sure is not a bad fighter. She couldn't beat me, of course, but that is some skill...

A deep chuckle draws my attention to a cat standing sight by the fighting cats. I scent the air and can tell immediately it's a tom, but I've never seen him before. He is sturdily built with powerful tabby shoulders and ice blue eyes. And he seems to be... flickering?

"That's it, make sure he knows you're in charge," the strange tom hissed at warrior. One of her ears flicks as if she heard him, but no other cat seems to be able to see him. Strange...

* * *

**Ivypool's POV**

I stared into Stripes' frightened eyes. After the first prompt, the voice hadn't told me anything else and I hadn't needed its help, but it had kept whispering encouragement... just like Hawkfrost used to...

"Hawkfrost!" I meowed suddenly.

"That's right," Hawkfrost spoke and I saw him for the first time, standing slightly to the side of the area where we had been fighting.

"Are you mad?" Stripes croaked and I remembered him.

"Get lost," I spat at him and let him up. I wanted to speak with Hawkfrost, but I hadn't realised how big the crowd had become during the fight. All the cats surged forward, some congratulating me, some asking questions, some (of the toms) scorning me, saying I wouldn't have beaten them that easily.

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. Enjoy the attention," Hawkfrost purred as I looked into his bright blue eyes. I nodded, but suddenly Rogue's voice caught my attention.

"Hey, Warrior! Where'd you learn to fight like that?" Rogue growled, but he didn't seem angry. Was he... impressed?

"I'm a-" I began, but Rogue slapped his tail over my mouth.

"Not here," he hissed.

"Wait, where are you going?" a cat called as I followed Rogue away.

"Come back tomorrow!" another cat invited.

"Great fight!" yet another cat congratulated me until I could no longer pick out the separate voices. And every voice was aimed at me, every invitation, every congratulation. It felt amazing, like nothing before. Dovewing got this kind of attention all of the time in ThunderClan, and I used to convince myself that it didn't matter, that the attention probably wasn't that great anyway. But now I know I was wrong. The attention made me feel wonderful, like every cat liked me and wanted to spend time with me, and not my sister. Like I was special.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I only realized we had stopped walking when Rogue told me to sit down.

"Okay, where did you learn all that?" Rogue asked me.

"I'm a Clan cat," was my answer.

"Clan cats don't fight like that. They're not as... ruthless as that. Where did you learn it? And where did he come from?" Rogue growled, jerking his muzzle towards where Hawkfrost was standing just behind me.

"You can see him?" I blurted out in surprise and the scolded myself. Hawkfrost just shrugged like he didn't mind and padded forward, still not saying anything. "He... actually, that's a good point," I added, and glared at Hawkfrost. "Where did you come from?"

Hawkfrost licked a paw and drew it calmly over his ear after sitting down between Rogue and I. "I am Hawkfrost, Warrior's old mentor," he told Rogue.

"Why did you tell him that? And wait, 'old' mentor? I thought I had to pass some sort of test before I become a recognised warrior of... uh, recognized warrior," I bit my tongue, just managing to stop myself telling Rogue things I might later regret.

Hawkfrost shrugged again. The shrugging was getting annoying now. "The cat you call Rogue holds an important part in your future. He needs to know who I am. And yes, technically you are not a 'recognised' warrior, but since you left," Hawkfrost paused, his gaze growing sharper, "since you left, you are no longer my apprentice. To Tigerstar, you are dead," he told me, his voice portraying a slight hint of emotion I tried and fail to pick up on.

"Well, that doesn't matter. I don't intend to go back to train with you. I was going to go back at first, but..." I glanced at Rogue. "I think this world has more to offer me. The cats appreciate me here. Well, now that I've shown them I'm not just some she-cat to be bossed around." The last part was aimed at Rogue, who didn't even have the grace to look guilty.

"You may have proved yourself to them, but not to me," Rogue explained.

A thought suddenly occurred to me. "Hawkfrost, did Tigerstar send you here to kill me?" I asked in a strangely cool voice. The thought of dying didn't frighten me, but not being scared of dying did scare me. Why wasn't I scared?

To my surprise, Hawkfrost threw back his head and laughed. Both Rogue and I watched him, confused. When he finally stopped enough to be able to talk, he explained, "No, Tigerstar didn't send me. He told me to kill you if you ever came back to the Clans, but he didn't send me to kill you. I came by myself."

I blinked as Hawkfrost stepped closer, his gaze becoming more intense. "Why would that make you laugh? Why did you come if Tigerstar didn't send you?" For some reason, by breathing quickened as he drew closer, like something –good or bad – was about to happen.

"It doesn't matter why I laughed. I came because you need me, Warrior," Hawkfrost whispered in my ear, his whiskers grazing my cheek.

"Why would I need you?" The moment the words were out of my mouth, I released they weren't true – I did need Hawkfrost. He had taught me so much already, but there was still a lot I had to learn, and, in a way, I knew that if he every left me I would miss the words of encouragement he whispered in my ears during training and battles, and the comfort his presence had brought me as an apprentice (a ThunderClan apprentice, that is) if he left. I was never really alone, he had always been there.

"Yeah, why does she need you?" Rogue's rough voice broke into my thoughts and Hawkfrost stepped away, leaving me feeling... disappointed? "She has me to look after her now."

I hissed angrily. "For the last time, I don't need protection!" I yowled and, leaving the two toms behind me, I stalked off into the night.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Please review and tell me your thoughts - it really encourages me to write ;)


	5. Chance

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Warriors, only the plot and Rogue and Mauble and Frond and... well you get the idea.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**~ Chance ~**

**Normal POV**

Ivypool pelted back the way she had come towards the Twoleg Barn, still bristling with anger that all of the toms kept treating her like she needed to be taken care of. Her thoughts were whirling fast, partly in anger at Rogue but also in confusion at Hawkfrost's appearance – not that she wasn't glad to see him, but she couldn't help but wonder if he thought she wasn't capable of taking care of herself either.

Upon reaching the large Twoleg Barn, she came to a halt, panting, and waited a few minutes to make herself presentable before slipping inside. She couldn't remember the way back to Rogue's nest, but maybe she could stay there until the morning when she would... well, she would decide then what she was going to do.

Ivypool thought about just sitting down by the side of the Barn, but as she let her gaze wander over the cats spread throughout the nest, some of what they were doing looked fun. Her whiskers twitched in amusement as she watched a younger smoky gray cat tweak the tail of whom looked like his brother and then run away, his paws slipping in his haste to get away from his brother who chased him with an angry yowl.

"Warrior?"

Ivypool glanced up as a familiar looking pale-ginger-striped-cream-furred she-cat padded over to her. Ivypool blinked, thinking hard. "You were the cat with Stripes earlier...?" she guessed.

"Yeah, I'm Kitsy," she nodded. "Are you alright? You seem a bit lost," Kitsy commented softly.

"I suppose..." Ivypool meowed guardedly, surprised at Kitsy's friendly tone.

Kitsy sat down in front of Ivypool. "Weren't you with Rogue?" she asked in a gently curious tone.

Ivypool shrugged. "I've had enough of stupid toms thinking she-cats are good for nothing but having kits," she hissed, flexing her paws but keeping her claws sheathed.

"I know what you mean," Kitsy purred to Ivypool's surprise. "Stripes is a good cat at heart, but he can be insensitive and loud at times."

"Is he your mate?" Ivypool couldn't help but ask.

Kitsy shook her head, laughter dancing in her eyes. "No, he's not. He's like most toms in this Twolegplace; he has several she-cats hanging off him. I suppose I used to be one of them, but..." she trailed off as if the memory was painful.

"You don't have to tell me. I mean, you just met me," Ivypool said uncomfortably. "And aren't most cats in the Twolegplace hostile towards strangers anyway?"

"Yes, most cats are hostile towards strangers. You'll probably collect a lot of hate from Rogue's cast-off she-cats, however you proved yourself to many of the toms when you fought Stripes. I think even Strike was impressed. Of course, even more she-cats will hate you for that. And, I know I just met you, but you're different from the other cats here. Most of them are fluff-brained and only think of toms. You seem intelligent and can defend yourself. I guess I kinda always wanted a friend like that," Kitsy admitted.

Ivypool stared at her, and couldn't help but feel a bit flattered. "Well, you've got me now," she smiled a genuinely.

"Great! If you want, you can stay with me instead of Rogue. I have a den not far from here – it's not as big or comfortable as Rogue's, but..." Kitsy began, her eyes lighting up happily.

"Anything is better than sharing with Rogue," Ivypool purred.

"Okay, but before we go there do you want to play a game of chase? I know it sounds like a kitten game but it's really fun, and the prize is a yummy Twoleg treat!" Kitsy jumped to her paws and Ivypool followed curiously, feeling warm as she realised she had a friend. _Maybe staying here in the Twolegplace will be better than I thought it would be._

* * *

**Rogue's POV**

I watch as Warrior storms off and then whip round to glare at Hawkfluff or whatever his name is. "Strangers aren't welcome here," I growl menacingly. "Especially not strangers that have 'magic' powers," I sneer, referring to his trick of becoming invisible. I don't know how he does it, but I don't like it.

Hawkfluff grins at me and I unsheathe my claws. "You're the one that scared Warrior away," he tells me and then disappears, seemingly fading into the night. I spit at the ground and begin to follow Warrior's scent trail, my tail swishing angrily. For some reason, everything about him just irritates me. He's just so sure of himself and completely confident that the next time I see him I wonder if I will be able to stop myself jumping on him and hurting him badly... or if I will _want_ to stop myself from fighting him.

As I walk, I wonder why he bothers me so much. It's not like I don't know any other cats that are a bit full of themselves, Sacky and Stripes for example, but there is just something about _him_. Maybe it's the way Warrior is so familiar with him. I don't like the way she looks at him, as if she knows him better than she is letting on. A strange feeling of possessiveness comes over me and I begin to walk faster.

When I reach the Barn and go inside, I can't see Warrior anywhere but I can see Mauble... that gives me an idea, if only I can find Warrior... My eyes scan the busy den and suddenly I see her racing with Kitsy and a couple of other cats. I let myself admire her speed for a moment, and the graceful way with which she dodges around the other cats scattered around the Barn.

I blink and remember why I'm here. I wait for the race to finish and then head over towards Warrior.

"Hey, Warrior," I call as I approach her.

Warrior jerks her head around to stare at me and then turns her back and strikes up a conversation with Kitsy. Undeterred I carry on, ignoring the angry yowl of a tom that I accidentally knock over.

"That was really fun," Warrior is saying as I reach her and Kitsy. "Maybe we can do it again soon?"

"Sure!" Kitsy replies enthusiastically. "But we should probably head back to my den now, otherwise we'll both be too tired to do anything tomorrow," she yawns. I pause. What? Did I hear that correctly?

"Kitsy, you do know Warrior is staying with me," I remind them as both she-cats turn around to look at me.

"Not anymore I'm not," Warrior says firmly.

I narrow my eyes. "Why not?"

"Because I refuse to stay somewhere with a cat who thinks of me as an inferior animal," Warrior hisses angrily.

I snort. "Well, you are inferior." Judging by the expression on her face that was the wrong thing to say. "I never took you for a quitter, Warrior," I sneer.

"That's because I'm not," she replies sharply.

I lick my paw and draw it over my whiskers smugly. "You're running away from your Clan," I point out. "And now you're running away from me."

Warrior opens her mouth and then closes it. She turns to Kitsy and I wait patiently. "I'm really sorry Kitsy, but I can't let anyone call me a coward. I know I left ThunderClan but I still partially feel like a ThunderClan cat, and for someone to call me a coward is degrading my Clan as well as me. I can't let that happen," she murmurs to her new friend in such a low voice that I have to prick my ears to be able to catch her words.

Kitsy blinks. "ThunderClan? I'm afraid I'm not very familiar with the Clans. However, I think you're right. Someone needs to teach Rogue a lesson, and something tells me you're just the cat to do it. I hope we can still be friends though."

I growl slightly. "_Someone needs to teach Rogue a lesson_?" I mimic, but both she-cats ignore me.

"Of course we can. I'll see you later," Warrior tells Kitsy in a warm tone before stalking right up to me. "You have no sense of decency do you? That was a _private_ conversation!" she hissed, her hackles raised.

I shrug. "Whatever. Come with me," I trot over to a tom called Frond who is lying completely still on the floor. I hear Warrior growl in annoyance but she follows me anyway.

"Frond, get up," I order, standing over him. The tabby doesn't move.

"Eh, Ginger – sorry, Rogue – Frond is having a Still Contest with Wally and Tuner," a black and white tom pads up to me.

I glance at him. "Is that so?" I reply, and nudge Frond with my paw. He still refuses to move, although I think I see his eye twitch.

"Leave him alone, Rogue. He obviously doesn't want to talk to you. Not that I blame him for that," Warrior interjects.

I hear a snigger from the black and white tom. "Shut it, Duckie," I growl. "As for you, Warrior – I didn't ask for your opinion."

"My names Duck, not Duckie!" Duck retorts and then glances at Warrior. "Hang on – you're the cat who beat Stripes?"

Warrior nods in surprise. "Yes?"

"That was a great battle!" Duck meows enthusiastically. I roll my eyes and shove Frond - hard.

"All right, all right! I'm listening!" Frond snaps, getting to his paws. "Thanks for making me lose, Gi- Rogue."

"You have a mouse, right? Go and get it," I tell him.

"What's in it for me?" Frond asks sulkily, his tail flicking in annoyance.

I tip my head to one side. "Do you really need me to answer that?" I remind him, unsheathing my claws. I watch him staring warily at my paws before setting off to find his mouse.

"You disturbed him because you wanted a _mouse_? Can't you hunt?" Warrior's voice draws my attention back to her and Duck. Duck snorts with laughter at the way she addresses me again and I glare at him dangerously.

"It's a special mouse," is my answer.

"Riiiight," Warrior draws the word out.

"Well, I'll see you around Warrior. Preferably without Rogue in tow?" Duck asks Warrior as if I'm not even here.

"I'm sure that can be arranged," Warrior agrees, shooting me a glance.

"Yeah, in about a thousand seasons," I growl.

Mirth dances in Warrior's eyes. "You'll be surprised," she meows and nods farewell to Duck.

"Okay, what was that? You want to have kits with him?" I question her bluntly as soon as Duck is out of hearing range.

"Yuck, no. I thought I already told you, I don't want kits – or a mate. But I'm not turning down the offer of friendship," Warrior retorts.

"Friendship," I snort. "Don't tell me you're that mousebrained. No tom here ever wants to be 'just friends' with a she-cat. If they approach her with an offer like that it's because they want much more than friendship," I tell her.

"Like I would let them have more than just friendship," Warrior points out. "Hey, isn't that Frond?" she nods over my shoulder.

I glance in the direction she indicated and nod. "What took you so long?" I call to him. Anger lingers in his eyes and he deposits the mouse he carries by its tail at my paws.

"See you around, Rogue," Frond mutters. It is clear he would rather not 'see me around', but I pay no attention to it. Instead, I grin.

"Great! Okay Warrior, you remember Mauble?"

Warrior blinks in surprise. "Yeah?"

"I saw her earlier and I thought she deserved a small gift from me to apologise for the way I acted towards her," I say with a glint in my eye that I know Warrior notices.

"You want to give her a mouse?" Warrior asks suspiciously.

"No, I want _you_ to give her a mouse," I correct her with a light smile.

"Why me?" she narrows her eyes.

I shrug. "You'll be glad you gave it to her once you've done it."

Warrior puts two and two together. "That's not just a mouse is it?"

I just smile. "Go on, take it to her."

"You better hope I don't regret doing this," Warrior warns me, picking up the mouse carefully, so as not to damage it.

I follow her at a distance as she finds Mauble and pads up to her. I sit down to watch, making sure I am within hearing range.

"Hey, um, Mauble?" Warrior puts the mouse down and call out awkwardly.

"Yes? Oh, it's you," Mauble sneers upon seeing Warrior. "What do you want?"

Warrior ducks her head apologetically. "Rogue sent me to give you this mouse and to tell you he's sorry," she nudges the mouse over to Mauble.

Mauble's look of suspicion turns to one of glee. "I knew he loved me," she purrs and I twitch my whiskers in amusement. Really, she has no idea. "I am so much prettier than you, after all."

I choke on my amused laugh. Any cat can see that Warrior is definitely much prettier than Mauble.

Warrior's tail flicks but apart from that she doesn't react, just waits as Mauble crouches down to eat the mouse in a few dainty bites. Suddenly she stumbles backwards and coughs, making retching sounds as she opens her jaws. Then she throws up and Warrior has to jump back to avoid being splattered.

I can't hold it in any longer. I just have to laugh at the expression on Mauble's face. I pad forward and Warrior turns to me.

"Come on, laugh! That was really funny, the expression on Mauble's face!" I chuckle. Warrior eyes me for a moment before a smile slips onto her face and soon she is laughing along with me.

"You're right, it was funny. Mean, but funny. She deserved it though," Warrior agrees.

"Hey, Warrior?" Kitsy calls and I sigh.

"Go away and bother someone else, Kitsy. Warrior's busy," I tell her as she draws nearer.

"No, I'm not," Warrior says immediately. "I'll see you later Rogue," she tells me and bound over to Kitsy.

I stare after them, angry. Why couldn't Kitsy have waited a bit longer before approaching us? Just as I was sure Warrior was beginning to warm up to me, Kitsy barges in and ruins it all. Kitsy will pay for this later, but right now I decide to follow them.

* * *

**Normal POV – With Foxleap the previous evening**

"Everyone, gather round. This is important," Brambleclaw meowed commandingly to his patrol. Most of the cats formed a circle around him, but two cats were missing. Brambleclaw narrowed his eyes and looked around to see the two young warriors chatting over a blackbird they were eating.

"Foxleap, Rosepetal," he yowled, making them look up in surprise. The ThunderClan deputy twitched his tail impatiently.

"Oh, sorry," Foxleap apologised as the two young cats joined him sheepishly.

Brambleclaw glanced at them before returning his attention to the whole group. "Tomorrow we are going to enter the Twolegplace. I want everyone to stay close to me, as it is easy to get lost in there. Right now I want everyone to get a good rest in preparation for tomorrow," he meowed and everyone nodded before dispersing to find comfortable sleeping places for the night.

* * *

**Author's Note: **You've probably realised by now that I am running out of names for the Twolegplace cats. I mean, I named a cat _Duck_. So if any of you have any suggestions for names then I'm all ears. There probably won't be any more OC main characters, but I need several names for background characters.

And please review! Reviews motivate me to update and in the next chapter we get to see more of Hawkfrost - I might even bring Tigerstar into the story.


	6. Intruders

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Warriors.

I want to thank Peperpaw and unicorns-are-fluffy for the names of Rose, Boon, Amissa, Oreo and Snake :) I might me using more of your names for cats in the next chapter, thanks so much for your suggestions!

I would also like to thank everyone who has followed/favourited/reviewed this story, encouraging me to continue with it. I would especially like to thank Rosefur of thunderclan and Shadows868 who both PM'd me telling me to hurry up and write the next chapter - without you, this chapter probably wouldn't even be here.

I'm so sorry for the long wait (it was roughly three months wasn't it? Or possibly four...) and I'll try to update much faster this time. Anyway, thanks for sticking with this story despite the long wait and I hope you enjoy this chapter enough to drop me a review :)

* * *

**Chapter Five**

**~ Intruders ~**

**The Dark Forest**

"You're doing it all wrong," Hawkfrost snapped at the white tom as he wobbled on his hind legs before crashing into the ground. "I told you, you need to concentrate on yourself and your battle, no matter what else is going on," he hissed in frustration.

"Hawkfrost."

The sound of his father's voice behind him made the Dark Forest warrior spin round with a sigh. He collected himself quickly, taking deep breaths to calm himself down.

"Father?" Hawkfrost asked as the amber-eyed tabby warrior padded out of the gloom at the side of the training clearing.

Tigerstar didn't even glance at the warrior Hawkfrost had been coaching – instead he simply flicked his tail in a gesture that meant he wanted his son to follow him. "I've called a meeting of all the senior Dark Forest warriors," he meowed in a smooth voice before padding off again, no doubt to round up the rest of the senior warriors.

Hawkfrost sighed and told his Dark Forest apprentice to keep practicing the move until he got back, and then he set of for the usual meeting place.

* * *

When he got there, Hawkfrost found Brokentail waiting for him. The old tabby was hunched over a murky pool of muddy water with his tail curled around his paws.

"I take it Tigerstar sent you," Brokenstar said without looking up.

Hawkfrost dipped his head. "Yes. Who else are we waiting for?"

"Mapleshade, Thistleclaw, Darkstripe-" Brokentail stopped when Hawkfrost gave a snort of disbelief.

"Darkstripe? Why's that piece of Mousedung been invited?" he scoffed.

Brokenstar finally looked up from the pool but before he could speak, Darkstripe entered the clearing.

"I can hear you, you know," he hissed at Hawkfrost.

Hawkfrost stared back at the black tabby tom with a look of distaste. "I know."

Darkstripe's eyes widened. "How dare you? Tigerstar will be hearing about your lack of respect for your fellow Dark Forest comrades," he warned, bristling.

"I'll show you respect when you've earned it," Hawkfrost narrowed his eyes at Darkstripe, challenging him to argue. Luckily for Darkstripe, Tigerstar arrived just then along with Thistleclaw and Mapleshade.

"I've called you here to discuss the training of our living warriors," Tigerstar began as he strode into the middle of the small clearing. "Which of you deem your apprentices ready to become full Dark Forest warriors?"

Hawkfrost opened his mouth to say 'Ivypool', but then remembered that she was no longer a Dark Forest warrior. Even mentioning her name would get him into trouble for she was a traitor as far as Tigerstar was concerned.

"Breezepool is ready," Brokentail offered, unknowingly covering up Hawkfrost's near slip-up.

"Good," Tigerstar nodded. "Any others?"

As the other senior warriors began discussing their apprentices, Hawkfrost felt bitterness churn in his stomach. Ivypool should have been one of the names mentioned. She was more than ready, and he didn't doubt her loyalty. Even though she had told him she needed some time away from all of the Clans to think things through, he knew she would come back to the Dark Forest in the end. But no, even if she came back now she wouldn't be accepted back because Tigerstar and most of the other Dark Forest warriors (fine, _all_ of the other warriors) had labelled her a traitor. If she even attempted to come back to the lake at all, Hawkfrost knew she would be killed. He would probably be the cat assigned to get rid of her.

"Hawkfrost? Have you anything to add?" Thistleclaw asked him, roughly shaking him out of his thoughts. Hawkfrost had always been good at hiding his emotions and was thankful for that ability as he managed to look at the older warrior with a cool mask of indifference fixed on his face.

"No. The only forest apprentice I had was more than ready to become a full warrior of the Dark Forest, but she has been deemed a traitor, so no," Hawkfrost wished he could take the words back the moment he had spoken them, but it was too late. Every cat turned to stare at him and only training kept Hawkfrost standing still with his head held high.

"Are you saying you would welcome a traitor amongst us?" Tigerstar hissed, padding up to his son.

Hawkfrost gave a single shake of his head, knowing he was treading on dangerous ground. "I am saying that just because she is no longer living in ThunderClan it does not mean that her loyalty to us has vanished," he stated. So far no-one had mentioned her name but they all knew who Hawkfrost was talking about.

"It is a shame," Brokentail agreed, stretching out a foreleg. "She showed such promise."

"She will come back to us in the end," Hawkfrost insisted, fighting to keep his voice as emotionless as possible. After a slight pause, he added, "If she doesn't, then I will dispose of her myself," he finished coldly, knowing he had to convince Tigerstar that his loyalty was not wavering.

Tigerstar eyed him closely for a few moments, stepping right up close to his blue-eyed son. "Once a traitor, always a traitor. You would do well to remember that," he hissed in Hawkfrost's ear before stalking past him. "This meeting is over," he growled over his shoulder.

Hawkfrost stood there, frozen as every other cat left the clearing until only one was left. "Darkstripe," he spat, shaking himself. He knew he had gotten off lightly with just a warning, and that next time he probably would not be so lucky.

"I'll be watching you, Hawkfrost. You'd better be careful because if you slip up then I'm going to make sure the whole of the Dark Forest knows it," the dark tabby tom warned nastily before trotting off in the same direction Tigerstar had taken.

Hawkfrost narrowed his eyes until they were this slits. He waited until he was sure he was alone before muttering "Scum," under his breath and taking off in a completely different direction to the one the other Dark Forest warriors had taken.

* * *

**Rogue's POV**

I try to follow Kitsy and Warrior, curious about what they are going to discuss, but Kitsy manages to give me the slip. This makes me frown, for I have a feeling that I'm not going to like whatever Kitsy is going to tell Warrior. Since there is nothing I can do about it, however, I settle down to wait for their return.

"Hey, Ginger, what a surprise to see you here," a familiar voice mews from behind me. Glancing over my shoulder I groan.

"Amissa," I sigh. Standing a couple of tail lengths away is a fairly pretty gray-and-white she cat, with two young cats that look too old to be kittens but too young to be fully grown standing on either side of her. Both of them have her colouring but my build, and I try to remember their names.

As I'm thinking about this, Amissa, one of my cast-off she-cats, pads forward and touches noses with me. "It's good to see you again after so long," she meows pointedly with a glance at her two sons. They follow close on her heels.

"Ah, yes, the... kittens," I nod, trying to look as if I remember them.

Amissa sighs. "Meet our sons, Oreo and Boon."

I hesitate, not sure how to greet them. "Nice to meet you," I say at last. "Hang on, I don't remember you giving birth to our offspring," I add as an afterthought. There's no doubt that they are both related to Amissa and I, though – both of them resemble us.

"Of course you don't," Amissa mutters, flattening her ears slightly. "You left before they were born."

I nod. "That would explain it." Judging from the look on Amissa's face, I probably shouldn't have sounded so casual.

"What are you doing here, Ginger?" the slightly larger son, Oreo, asks me in a polite (but cool) tone. I blink in surprise. He actually has some manners - at least, he's not outright rude like a lot of rogues and loners.

"I should ask you the same question. Also, my name is no longer Ginger. I go by Rogue now," I explain, glancing restlessly around the Twoleg den. Out of all the cats here, Amissa just had to come and say hello to me, didn't she.

"We came to see you," Boon says. Although Oreo is slightly bigger, his voice is slightly deeper. When I don't lose the somewhat confused look on my face, the son I didn't even know existed until a few moments ago speaks again. "We wanted to meet our father, whom we have heard so much about," he tells me. His tone is polite with no hint of accusation hidden within it.

"Well, you've met me. I'm sure you have things to do," I dip my head and turn around, hoping they'll take the hint.

"Rogue, we need your help," Amissa mews pleadingly. I turn back to face her with an exaggerated sigh.

"Help with what? I'm busy right now," I say firmly, wishing Warrior would hurry up with whatever she was discussing with Kitsy.

Undeterred, Amissa continues, "Some strange-smelling cats have moved into our den and we have nowhere else to go." She stares at me with her big green eyes, but I just shrug.

"Drive them out then."

"We can't, there are too many of them!" Amissa cries. I blink at her and she takes a deep breath, composing herself. "Look, I know you don't love me – maybe you never even liked me – but I need your help and you owe me for all the times you weren't there when I was bringing up your sons and daughter."

The last word of her sentence throws me. "Daughter?" I echo.

"Our sister, Rose, is trapped inside with the strange cats," Oreo looks at me, his eyes begging me to help.

"Look, I'd like to help you, I really would, but I'm waiting for someone and I can't leave her here because she would be lost without me," I tell them. I doubt their problem is that urgent; it's probably just Amissa looking for attention. Other she-cats have pulled worse stunts before to get my attention.

"Please!" Boon throws himself at my paws and I take an automatic step back. His young, innocent eyes stare up at me pleadingly. "Please, father, save our sister!"

I raise my eyes upwards towards the roof of the den. If they think I'm going to fall for that then they have another thing coming.

"Of course Rogue's going to help your sister," Warrior's voice startles me and I jump when I look to my left and see her standing right next to me. How did she get there so silently without me noticing her?

"Who are you?" Amissa asks her warily.

"That's not important. Right now, we need to go and save your daughter – what was her name, Rose?" Warrior gazes at Amissa levelly as the other she-cat nods, stunned into silence. "Okay, where's your nest?"

"Hey, I never said I was going," I protest, but to no avail. Warrior shoots me a stern look before turning back to Amissa, Boon and Oreo.

"Why should we tell you?" Oreo challenges Warrior, stepping forward even though Warrior is bigger than him. He flexed his paws bravely but it's obvious (to me, at least) that he's no match for her. He isn't even fully grown, for goodness sake!

Warrior looks down at my son. "You want to save your sister don't you?" Oreo nods. "Then we have no time to waste. We can talk as we walk," she meows briskly, sounding for all the world as if she were ordering about cats from her own Clan.

Amissa, Oreo and Boon all give her a wide-eyed stare and then whist around, leading her (and me) out of the barn and towards Amissa's den.

* * *

**Ivypool's POV**

As we walked quickly through the dark streets of the Twolegplace, I found out that the three cats who had been asking Rogue for help were his former mate and two sons. Amissa had raised Oreo, Boon and their sister Rose all by herself with only the help of her brother, Snake. He had been forced to hunt for them as well as his own mate and kits. In return I told them my name (Warrior) and how I had met Rogue.

Suddenly Amissa stopped in front of a tall, shadowy wall. I shivered in the chilly night air and waited for Amissa to explain why we had stopped.

"Our den is just the other side of the wall," Amissa whispered. Her eyes gleamed in the darkness as she looked at me, waiting for my command. It was silly, really, that she was following my orders when it was Rogue she came for. I had never even led a patrol before; I wasn't sure I was ready to launch an attack.

As if sensing my hesitation, Rogue pressed up against me. "You'll do fine," he breathed in my ear. I scowled at him, but I wasn't going to complain about the warmth that radiated from his body.

"If you're so confident, you can help Amissa instead of sitting on your haunches waiting for other cats to do the work for you!" I glared at him, managing to make out his outline from the dim light of a nearby streetlight. It was flickering on and off, making me slightly disorientated. I tore my eyes away from the light and instead stared up at the wall in front of us.

"Right, well, I guess you'd better lead the way into your den and I'll take it from there," I decided.

Rogue and I followed Amissa, Boon and Oreo as they led us along the wall to some boxes, behind which was a small hole. Rogue had a bit of trouble getting his shoulders through the hole but the rest of us managed fine and, once we had all emerged on the other side of the wall, scanned the clearing.

It was a smallish, square space filled with dustbins and empty cardboard boxes. _Not a bad place for a den, if you've nowhere else to go, _I thought, wrinkling my nose against the smell.

"There they are," Oreo's mew surprised me. I turned my head quickly to see him crouched right next to me. "Look," he flicked his tail towards the far corner of the shadowy, enclosed space. Sure enough I saw the shape of a cat moving about but due to the darkness I couldn't make out much more.

"Okay, well, why don't you try and ask for Rose and your den back. If that doesn't work then Rogue and I will help you fight them off," I Amissa. Looking at her, I saw a determined glint in her eyes as she walked forward with her sons by her side.

As my eyes adjusted to the bad light, I could just make out the shapes of cats coming out to meet her.

"Where is Rose?" Amissa asked them. From what I could see, there were only five cats. _Great, one each if it comes to a fight_. "What are you doing here?"

I felt Rogue creep closer to me. "Not exactly the way I would have gone about it," he whispered.

"Well then you should be out here challenging them, not Amissa," I pointed out, shuffling away from his as quietly as I could. Rogue shuffled after me as I kept shuffling away and I was so absorbed in not letting Rogue get too close to me that I completely missed the intruder's reply. Only when I heard Oreo yowl and Boon growl did I look up to see the two young cats throw themselves on the strangers.

"Stupid youngsters," I heard Rogue growl under his breath. Glancing over at him, I saw that he hadn't missed the exchange.

One of the intruders pinned Boon – or was it Oreo? – under his paw like he would pin a leaf.

"Let go of my son!" Amissa yowled, throwing herself on the intruder.

"Time to help them," I told Rogue and crept forward, keeping close to the ground. The intruders hadn't spotted me yet and I planned to keep it that way until I was ready to reveal myself.

I watched two of the intruders drag Amissa away from the intruder who had Oreo pinned down (I was now sure that it was Oreo and not Boon). Rogue immediately went to help her. I cast my eyes around for Boon until I found him wrestling with two other intruders. A third cat about his size appeared from inside the boxes to help him, and I guessed this was Rose, his sister.

I looked back at Oreo to see him still struggling beneath the intruder's paws and quickly darted over to him, bowling into his attacker.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size," I growled as I pinned him down.

"Whoa, where did you come from? He attacked me first anyway!" the cat I was now clawing at screeched. There was something familiar about his voice but I didn't let myself dwell on it. Instead, I slashed at the intruder's face. He ducked out of the way but not before I managed to nick his ear. He yowled in pain and wriggled out from underneath me.

At that moment, Oreo tried to help me by jumping on the intruder but the intruder turned on him and batted him away. Oreo stumbled backwards, dazed, and I jumped in front of him, my eyes blazing with anger.

"Can't you see he's not even fully grown yet?" I spat, slashing at the intruder's chest. The intruder was surprisingly fast and dodged my blow, jumping at me. I managed to skid out of the way but he caught my tail in his teeth. I silently cursed myself for making such a silly mistake, and instead of letting him jerk my tail I threw myself at him, bringing both of us crashing down to the ground. We rolled over and over until we hit a wall. I landed up on top and stared down at my enemy triumphantly.

"Ha! Take that, you..." I began, but trailed off as I looked at the cat I was holding down more closely. He really did seem familiar. I scented the air but could smell nothing over the stench of rubbish.

In the moment I was distracted, the intruder shoved me away and slumped down on top of me, pinning me beneath him. "Not so bold now, are we?" he taunted.

I froze. _No, it couldn't be..._ "Foxleap?" I gasped.

As I stared up at him, the battle light faded from the tom's eyes and was replaced with recognition. "Ivypool?"

* * *

**Author's Note: **So how did you like it? As I said up top, without all the reviews (and PM's) this chapter still wouldn't be here, so please please review and let me know that I'm not just wasting my time on this story! As long as I always have at least one reader then I'll keep writing, even if slowly (the more reviews I get the faster I'll update).


	7. All in One Place

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Warriors.

I felt guilty for making you all wait so long for the last update, so here's the next chapter.

* * *

** Chapter Six**

**~ All in One Place ~**

**Normal POV**

Foxleap jumped off Ivypool, his green eyes wide with shock. "Ivypool!" he repeated, dumbfounded.

Ivypool quickly got to her paws and sheathed her claws but her fur was still spiked as she stared at her (ex?)Clanmate. "What in the name of StarClan are you doing here?" she gasped.

Foxleap blinked and shook his head as if to clear it. "We were looking for you," he answered. "What are you doing here?"

Ivypool leaned closer to him. "_We_?" she repeated.

Foxleap ducked his head. "Y-yeah, Firestar sent a patrol to look for you. I came with Brambleclaw, Whitetail, Rosepetal and Cloudtail," he told her. Ivypool hissed, partly in annoyance but also in alarm. She swung around, trying to make out the writhing shapes of wrestling cats in the darkness.

"Stop!" she yowled.

Surprised by the strength of her order, the fighting cats tumbled apart and one of them bounded up to Ivypool. As she drew closer, Ivypool recognised her mother's blue eyes staring back at her.

"Ivy-?" Whitewing mewed, staring at her daughter.

"Yes, it's me Whitewing," Ivypool nodded quickly before Whitewing could finish saying her name. Whitewing gave a joyful yowl and threw herself at Ivypool, covering her in licks. Ivypool squirmed and wriggled in her mother's grasp.

"'M not a kit!" Ivypool mumbled, wishing the ground would just swallow her when she saw everyone, Clan cats and rogues alike, watching them.

Suddenly her mother disappeared with a screech and Ivypool turned round, puzzled.

"Get off me, you monster," Whitewing hissed at the cat who had dragged her away from her daughter. Ivypool stared hard at the cat who was now glaring at Whitewing until she recognised him.

"Rogue, leave her alone!" Ivypool growled and jumped on him. He released Whitewing in surprise and the white she cat fell to the ground dazed. Ivypool boxed his ears with her claws sheathed. "What do you think you're doing?" she hissed at him.

Rogue shook her off and climbed to his paws, glaring at her. "She was attacking you, what was I supposed to do? Let her hurt you?"

"You mousebrain, she wasn't attacking me - she's my mother, she was just being affectionate," Ivypool told him tartly. "Something I'm sure you find a foreign concept, but do try to understand that being affectionate is the opposite of attacking a cat," she added slyly.

Rogue narrowed his eyes at her but before he could retort, Whitewing recovered and threw herself at Rogue.

"Get away from my daughter, you brute!"

Ivypool watched her mother in surprise. "Hey – Whitewing, it's okay, he's not-"

"You leave him alone, he wasn't doing anything wrong," Amissa appeared beside Ivypool from out of nowhere and lunged towards Whitewing.

Whitewing rolled out of the way just in time, but while she wasn't looking at Rogue he managed to grab his tail and jerk it, hard. She screeched in pain and Ivypool jumped forward to aid her mother but someone else got there first.

"C-Cloudtail?" Ivypool stammered, squinting through the darkness at the white warrior who had thrown himself at Rogue along with another cat Ivypool recognised. "And Rosepetal? What in the name of StarClan...? Did Firestar send a patrol out looking for me?" she turned to Foxleap who was watching the wrestling cats. He looked tense and ready to get involved at any point.

"What? Oh, er, yes, he did," the reddish warrior nodded distractedly.

A growl rumbled in Ivypool's chest. "And did Firestar himself come to haul me back to the Clan?" she asked sarcastically, jumping when Brambleclaw's voice sounded from right next to her.

"No, but he did send me," Brambleclaw told her, his amber eyes revealing nothing. As Ivypool stared at him, she was forcefully reminded of Tigerstar which led her onto thinking about Hawkfrost. _Great StarClan, can I never do anything without someone ordering me around, trying to 'protect' me?_

"Why?" Ivypool asked once she found her voice.

"How dare you hurt my mother," Boon's growl made Ivypool's gaze flit across to where the young tom was clawing at Whitewing. Her heart lurched when she saw something dark, probably blood, patching her fur. She hesitated for a moment, not wanting to fight Boon but also needing to defend her mother. Luckily Foxleap jumped forward to help her and Ivypool let out a tiny sigh of relief when she saw Whitewing get back on her paws.

"W-Warrior?" a squeak from behind them made both Ivypool and Brambleclaw turn around. Oreo was trying to sit up, his eyes clouded with dizziness.

"Are you okay? Did Foxleap stun you?" Ivypool guessed as Oreo nodded slowly.

"What's going on? Where's Amissa? And Rose and Boon?" he asked her, trying to stand but falling over. Ivypool darted over to help support him, letting him lead on her shoulder.

"Take it easy, they're fine..." Ivypool's voice trailed off when she heard a shriek of pain come from the battling cats.

"What was that?" Oreo gasped. Ivypool found Brambleclaw's worried gaze as he stepped closer to them.

"You know this cat?" Brambleclaw asked her in a calm voice.

"Yes. He, his mother and his brother asked me – well, technically they asked Rogue - for help, but that's not important. We need to stop them fighting," Ivypool told the deputy.

"I'll get my patrol together, if you can control the rogues," Brambleclaw said shortly and bounded over to the other cats.

"Who was that?" Oreo asked Ivypool with his eyes half closed. Ivypool muttered curses under her breath.

"Don't go to sleep, you have to stay awake, okay?" Ivypool told him. "I'll be right back." Ignoring Oreo's half-hearted protests she followed Brambleclaw's pawsteps and scanned the fighting cats. _If only it was daytime, this would be so much easier,_ she thought with a groan. Spotting Boon and Amissa fighting Whitewing and Cloudtail, she picked her way over to them and grabbed Boon by the scruff, hauling him away.

"Geroff, lemme go," Boon mumbled through Ivypool's tail fur when she set him down.

"Stay here, I'm trying to stop the fighting," Ivypool told him.

Ivypool was trying to reason with her mother, Cloudtail and Amissa when Brambleclaw's commanding yowl rang out and the fighting ceased instantly. _Why in the name of StarClan didn't I think of that?_ She thought in despair.

Brambleclaw had jumped up onto a couple of piled boxed, and was surveying the cats below him with a clear expression in his eyes. "There will be no more fighting," he said at last. "We have found what we came for, and apologise for trespassing on your territory." After he said this, he inclined his head towards Amissa.

Ivypool glanced over at Amissa as well and noticed something. The darkness was lifting. Looking up at the sky, her heart leapt: dawn was approaching. She had never been so glad to see the sun rise in her whole life! She also noticed that she was sitting in the middle of a large space. Huddled next to one wall with Oreo (who was trying his best to keep his eyes open, like Ivypool had told him) were the rogues; Amissa, Oreo, a she-cat Ivypool assumed to be Rose, and Rogue. All except Rogue were avoiding looking at the Clan cats who were sitting licking their wounds by the other wall. With a start Ivypool realised she was sitting in roughly the middle of the area, right between the two separate groups.

"And don't forget keeping my Rose a prisoner," Amissa spat at Brambleclaw, the fur on her spine spiked up in defiance. Ivypool glanced quickly at Brambleclaw but he appeared completely calm. The rest of the ThunderClan patrol, however, were another matter entirely. Cloudtail hissed and Whitewing sprung to her paws with Rosepetal. It was still too dark to see their wounds but Ivypool could smell the blood and she hoped none of them (or the rogues) were too badly hurt.

"We weren't keeping her a prisoner; we didn't even know she was there until she started wailing her head off from inside one of the boxes!" Foxleap yowled, his eyes blazing. Part of Ivypool felt relieved that her Clanmates hadn't intentionally been keeping Rose a prisoner, but the other part just hoped they wouldn't begin fighting again.

"Quiet, Foxleap," Brambleclaw glared down at his warriors until they all sat down again. Ivypool's whiskers twitched when she heard Foxleap mumble 'they started it' under his breath.

"As I said, we apologise and will be on our way," Brambleclaw repeated his earlier words and seemed about to jump down off the boxed when Rogue spoke up.

"What did you mean when you said you'd found what you were looking for?"

Ivypool stared at him, shocked by his appearance. His fur was ruffled and a chunk of his tail fur was missing, and his fur was splattered with blood that didn't seem to be his own for there were no other injuries apart from a minor scrape on his side. _How is he almost completely unharmed?_ She asked herself. She didn't dwell on it for too long however, for Brambleclaw began to answer Rogue's question.

"Her," Brambleclaw flicked his tail at Ivypool. "We were looking for Iv-"

"Warrior," Ivypool cut in quickly with a nervous glance at the rouges. "Here, I am known as Warrior."

Brambleclaw nodded in understanding. "We were looking for Warrior."

Amissa stepped forward then. Ivypool was glad to see that while she still glared at the ThunderClan warriors she had calmed down enough for curiosity to gleam in her eyes. "Why? What do you want with Warrior?"

"That's none of your business," Cloudtail growled. Before another argument could break out, Ivypool decided it was time for her to explain.

"They're my Clanmates," she meowed simply.

Amissa nodded. "That explains the arrogance, then."

"What?" Cloudtail and Foxleap both sprung to their paws again.

Amissa shrugged lightly. "Clan cats are full of arrogance. You think you can do what you please and steal the home of anyone who gets in your way because there are too many of you to fight and you consider yourselves above other cats," she told them, her tone accusative. Ivypool winced.

"Say that again," Cloudtail stalked forward but Brambleclaw bounded down and intercepted him.

"Don't forget Warrior's a Clan cat too, Amissa," Rogue cut in lazily. Everyone stared at him but he gazed at Ivypool unblinkingly for a few moments before glancing back at Amissa. "You think she's arrogant?" He was sitting in a relaxed position with his tail lying along the ground and his eyes showing no signs of aggression. He was probably the only cat (apart from Oreo and Ivypool) who had his claws sheathed.

Amissa's eyes widened as Ivypool looked at her questioningly. "N-no, of course not!" she stammered. "I only meant that... well... Warrior's just an exception," she meowed at last. _Thanks,_ Ivypool thought drily.

"Come on, we're leaving," Brambleclaw said firmly with his tail lying on Cloudtail's shoulders, probably to prevent the rash white tom from doing anything stupid. "Ivy- Warrior?" he called when she didn't try to follow her Clanmates.

Ivypool blinked but didn't say anything.

"Maybe she doesn't want to come with you," Rogue meowed, padding up to Ivypool and sitting down next to her to scratch his ear.

Brambleclaw narrowed his eyes at the large ginger tom. "Why do you care?"

Rogue shrugged. "I don't. I just thought that Clan cats were considerate of their Clanmates feelings."

"What do you know about the Clans?" Brambleclaw asked him sharply as Whitewing took a couple of paces towards Ivypool.

"Of course we care about her feelings – certainly more than you do," Whitewing hissed.

Ivypool's gaze darted between her Clanmates and the rogues. _What do I do?_ She asked herself desperately.

_Do what you want to do,_ a voice whispered in Ivypool's ear. She jumped and glanced sharply to her left to see Hawkfrost's shimmering form standing there. She glanced back at the arguing cats and Hawkfrost added, _Oh, they can't see me. Only you can_.

"What do you mean, do what I want to do?" Ivypool asked him in a low voice, hoping not to attract the attention of any of the other cats.

Hawkfrost gazed at her intently. _Do you want to go back to ThunderClan?_

Ivypool shook her head slowly. "Not yet. I'm not ready to go back yet," she replied quietly.

Hawkfrost nodded understandingly. _Then tell them that_.

"But-" Ivypool began to protest but Hawkfrost padded closer and placed his muzzle next to her ear.

"If they really are your Clanmates, then they'll understand," he promised her. Ivypool shivered as she felt his breath in her ear and opened her jaws to reply but Hawkfrost was already gone, his shimmery form swallowed up by the shadows, when she turned to look at him.

Ivypool couldn't help but feel comforted as she turned back to her Clanmates. It seemed to her like he was the only cat right now who really understood her, and wanted to let her choose for herself what she wanted to do. She shook her head slightly and coughed to attract everyone's attention.

"Brambleclaw, I really appreciate you and everyone else coming out here to look for me but I'm sorry, I'm just not ready to go back yet," Ivypool meowed, wishing she sounded more confident with her decision.

"What?" Whitewing was staring at her in disbelief. "You don't... you don't _want_ to come back?"

Ivypool shook her head quickly. "No, that's not what I meant. I just need-" she hesitated. "Of course I'm going to come back, just not yet. I need some time to think a couple of things through, that's all," she tried to explain without going into too much detail.

Relief flooded her mother's eyes. "It's okay, I understand."

Ivypool smiled at Whitewing only to frown at Rogue a second later when he shot a triumphant look at Brambleclaw.

"Told you," he meowed with a casual shrug. Ivypool nudged him and gave him a look that (she hoped) told him to drop it. When he said nothing more on the subject, Ivypool knew it had worked.

Brambleclaw dipped his head. "Well, then, the Clan will be ready to welcome you back whenever you are ready." He turned to leave but Whitewing blocked his way.

"I'm staying here with her. I can't just abandon my daughter," she told him in a voice that told Ivypool she was actually asking for permission, which Brambleclaw granted with a nod.

"In that case, I'm staying too," Cloudtail spoke up. When Whitetail began to protest, he shot her a look. "I'm not just going to abandon _my_ daughter either – besides, Brightheart would kill me if I did," he said in a voice that welcomed no arguments.

"I want to stay as well," Foxleap said to Ivypool's surprise. Whitewing and Cloudtail she had expected, but Foxleap? To answer her questioning look he added, "This place is full of hostile rogues – you might need help keeping them at bay." Ivypool shot him a sceptical look and he sighed. "I made a promise to Dovewing that I wouldn't come back without you."

Ivypool clenched her teeth at the mention of her sister's name. Even when Dovewing was nowhere near her she still managed to control Ivypool's life!

"Relax, they're only looking out for you," Rogue told her in a low voice, pressing against her. Ivypool nodded, and then gave him an amused glance.

"I really will claw you if you don't move," she warned him, but her voice carried a light tone.

"In that case, we may as well all stay for a while," Brambleclaw's words brought Ivypool's attention back to the situation.

"Wh-what? You don't have to do that!" Ivypool exclaimed in alarm. "There's nowhere for you to stay, and-"

Rogue brushed passed her suddenly and walked right up to Brambleclaw. "You are all welcome to stay with me for a bit," he offered, ignoring Ivypool's look of surprise.

Brambleclaw narrowed his eyes. "You were fighting us not long ago," he said.

Rogue shrugged. "Warrior is already staying with me and there's plenty of room in my den. It's either that or sleep on the streets."

Brambleclaw glanced at Ivypool who gave a nod of affirmation.

"It's true. If you're all intent on staying here with me then Rogue's den in as good a place as any to stay in," Ivypool meowed with an uncertain look at Rogue. He caught her glance and gave her a grin before turning back to Brambleclaw.

Brambleclaw began to say something else but a cry of alarm interrupted him.

"Oreo? Oreo, please wake up!" Amissa yowled. Ivypool spun round to see her crouched over her son's still form.

"I didn't think I hit him that hard." Ivypool hardly heard Foxleap's guilty mumble as she darted over to Amissa and Oreo. Pressing her ear to his chest, she looked up at Amissa.

"He's still alive, but..." Ivypool trailed off. Looking back at Rogue and Brambleclaw, her eyes pleaded for their help. "We can't let him die..."

"We need to get him somewhere warm," Rosepetal spoke up from behind Whitewing.

Both Amissa and Ivypool immediately looked to Rogue, who sighed.

"Fine, fine, you can bring him to my den," Rogue told them. "You may as well all stay with me for as long as you need to."

Brambleclaw dipped his head to Rogue. "In that case, we accept your offer. Lead the way."

As Rogue began leading them out of the enclosed area, Ivypool turned back to Oreo.

"I'll help you carry him," she told Amissa. "There's no time to lose."

* * *

**Author's Note: **So what did you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review, and concrit is welcome.

Oh, yeah, I wrote Foxleap with green eyes because I'm not sure what colour his eyes actually are, but that's just how I imagine him. If any of you do know what colour his eyes actually are then please let me know and I'll change it, thanks.

In case you're wondering, the title is referring to all the main characters finally having met.


	8. This is Why Clan Cats Don't Trust Rogues

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Warriors, or any of the characters apart from Rogue in this chapter. Missy was created by Lulu Noctuam, and Rosefur and Storm belong to Rosefur of thunderclan.

This is mostly a filler chapter where all the characters meet each other but I left you a cliffhanger to make up for that.

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

**~ This is Why Clan Cats Don't Trust Rogues ~**

**Rogue's POV**

I lead everyone through the Twolegplace in silence. Dawn is coming and Twolegs will soon begin to wake. As I pad past a stretch of grass the Twolegs call a park, I glance over my shoulder to make sure everyone is still following me. Directly behind me are the Clan cats, with Warrior behind them helping Amissa carry Oreo and Rose and Boon following on after.

Just as I turn my head back to the path in front of me I turn a corner and something crashes into me. I roll over, letting out a surprised 'meow', before getting a mouthful of fur. I try to push the other cat (at least I think it's a cat) away but its paws are tangled with mine.

"Get off," I hiss, spitting the fur out of my mouth. I struggle for a few moments before managing to heave the other cat off of me and I get to my paws angrily, shaking out my fur. "What do you think you're doing?" I begin to growl but I have to dive out of the way when two more cats come dashing round the corner, narrowly missing smashing into me. Instead they trip over the cat I just wriggled free from and all three land in sprawled heap.

I stare at them as they disentangle themselves and something clicks in my brain. "Rosefur, Missy? And Storm?"

Storm gets shakily to his paws. His eyes are wide and his fur is on end. "B-Brute?"

I shook my head. "I changed my name again," I told him.

"Oh, I remember. Snake said something about that – it's Ginger now, right?" Storm guesses as he casts an uneasy glance in the direction he just came from.

"Ginger was my name for a season, yes, but now I go by Rogue. What were you doing just now?" I ask him as he glances around warily. He jumps, startled, when he catches sight of all the cats who had been following me. They're now gathered in a group right on the corner, and I narrow my eyes as the lead tabby cat, Bramblesomething, looks up at me.

"Friends of yours?" His tone is amused, and I growl slightly.

"Who are _they_?" Storm glares at them all.

Amissa steps forwards and looks at the Clan cats with an expression of distaste on her face. "Clan cats," she tells him in a disgusted voice.

"Amissa!" Storm perks up happily. "I didn't know you lived around here?"

I stroll forward. "You can catch up later. Right now, we're heading back to my place. It was nice to see you again Storm and..." I glance over at the two she cats who were still getting to their paws. "Missy and Rosefur. Goodbye," I say and turn to walk off.

"I used to live several blocks away from the park, until the Clan cats stole my den," Amissa continues as if I hadn't even spoken. I glare at her but she ignores me.

"We did not steal your den! For the last time, we didn't know it belonged to you!" a reddish brown tom growls.

"Clan cats are all the same," Storm agrees with Amissa, shooting a nasty look towards the tom who had spoken.

"Brute! We need to get out of here, fast," Missy pants, staggering towards me.

"My name is Rogue," I tell her, "and getting out of here is what I am trying to do."

Rosefur runs forward and tugs at Missy's tail, hardly glancing at me. "Come on Missy, just leave him. He can take care of himself, now we have to go!" Her eyes are wild and her fur all over the place. Something is definitely wrong.

"What were you running from?" I hiss at them, but a volley of barks in the distance answers for them.

"Dogs," Rosefur whispers.

"This way," I yowl, darting off in the direction of my den, barely aware of everyone following me. No dog has ever found my den and I want to keep it that way, so I lead them up along a fence, over a wall and onto a roof. We sprint along a series of flat roofs which belong to monster dens before we have to jump down onto a wall and then the ground again. The dogs are still some way off but their barks and howls don't cease. Finally we reach my den and I lead everyone through a hole in the fence, and then inside the empty Twoleg building.

I let myself catch my breath as everyone arrives, and then pad over to Amissa and Warrior, who are bent over Oreo. Warrior is breathing hard but doesn't look too worn out, and is nosing at Oreo as I draw closer. Amissa however collapses on the ground, and I scoff at her before turning towards Warrior.

"How is he?" I ask her. Warrior jumps, startled by my voice.

"Oreo is... well, I think he just needs a good rest, but I'm not sure. I'm no medicine cat," Warrior answers me, her eyes fixe don Oreo. "He should be fine, no thanks to your friends," she glares over at Basil, Rosefur and Missy.

"What are you blaming them for?" I frown slightly, catching sight of Missy padding over to us out of the corner of my eye.

Warrior looks up at me, her eyes glinting accusingly. "If they hadn't come dashing around the corner and put those dogs on our trial, then Oreo would already be awake," she growls.

"It wasn't our fault you were in the way, and it's certainly not our fault that your kit can't walk by himself yet," Missy glares at Warrior.

"He's not my kit, and you should have been paying attention to where you were going," Warrior matched Missy's glare, her fur bristling.

"Then why are you so determined to defend him? And you try paying attention to where you're going when you have a pack of dogs on your heels!" Missy retorts angrily.

"Because-" Warrior begins hotly but another cat bound up to her and whispers something in her ear. She starts spitting something at him but he keeps whispering and eventually the fur on her back lies flat again. Turning back to Missy, she takes a deep breath. "Next time, make sure to be more careful when you're dealing with dogs," she growls and stalks away with the reddish brown tom. I don't miss the way the tom rests his tail on her shoulder as they walk, and he's walking slightly too close to her in m y opinion, but I turn away when Missy speaks again.

"What is her problem?" Missy asks me, still bristling from her confrontation with Warrior.

I shrug, unconcerned. "Well, technically you did just endanger her and the rest of us," I point out as I lick my ruffled fur, smoothing it down.

Missy makes a disgusted sound in the back of her throat. "And you wonder why I left you," she hisses scornfully. "You've known that cat for... what, a quarter moon? And you're defending her over some of your oldest friends."

I twitch my whiskers. "Actually, I've known her for only a couple of sundowns. Oh, and it was I who left you, if I recall correctly." I get up and wander away, not missing the words she mutters after me:

"I see you haven't changed much – your ego is just as big as it was when _I_ left _you_."

* * *

**Foxleap's POV**

I lead Ivypool away from the other she-cat and take her over to corner opposite the entrance to the den, where the rest of us ThunderClan cats have settled down.

"It would be a really bad idea to start a fight now," I told her in a low voice, casting a glance over my shoulder at the other she-cat who had turned her back on us. "I think we're all worn out form the fighting and then running from those dogs."

Ivypool sighed. "I know, but it was her fault Amissa stumbled and Oreo's paw is now at a funny angle."

We had just reached Brambleclaw and the others, and I was trying to think of something to distract her from that when Rosepetal bounded up to us.

"Amissa is the young cat's mother, right?" she asked Ivypool. I flashed her a grateful glance.

Ivypool sat down with a nod. "Amissa is the mother of Oreo, Boon and Rose. Their father is Rogue – that big ginger tom over there," she pointed with her tail back in the direction we had just came from.

"So Rogue is Amissa's mate?" Brambleclaw stepped forward as I also sat down, next to Ivypool.

Ivypool shook her head, amusement glimmering in her eyes. "No, he has no mate. A lot of the toms in the Twolegplace don't have any one mate, but Rogue is the worst, from what I've heard. He sires lots of kits but can't be bothered to stick around and help their mother look after them. I don't think he cares for anyone, really," she told us. My eyes widened.

"That's... that's..." I searched for the right word.

"Despicable?" Ivypool supplied and I nodded.

"Yeah. Why would he do that?"

Rosepetal lay down on some straw she had scraped together. "He's a rogue, isn't he? Maybe all rogues are like that."

Beside me, Ivypool bristles. "Not all rogues are like Rogue, and even Rogue isn't that bad. He just... Well, Rogue's not as bad as I made him seem. Most of the she-cats he has kits with are pretty nasty pieces of work anyway."

"Okay," I eyed her suspiciously, but at that moment Whitewing trotted up to us. I left when Whitewing began grilling her daughter, and instead went to join Brambleclaw and Cloudtail.

"How long do you think we'll have to stay here?" Cloudtail was asking Brambleclaw as I sat down opposite the white tom. We all glanced over at Ivypool.

"I don't know, but hopefully not too long. What was she doing with that other she-cat?" It took me a couple of seconds to realise Brambleclaw's last question was directed at me.

"Ivypool blamed the she-cat – I think she's called Missy – for leading the dogs to us, because the kit she was helping, Oreo, twisted his paw. Missy was insisting it wasn't her fault," I reported.

Brambleclaw stared at me thoughtfully. "Well, good work for avoiding a fight," he told me. I puffed my chest out proudly. It wasn't every day the deputy praised you.

"Brambleclaw?" Ivypool trotted over to us with Whitewing shadowing her like she was afraid to let her daughter rout of her sight. "I'm sorry about all of this..."

Brambleclaw inclined his head. "How long do you plan on staying here?"

Ivypool shifted her weight nervously. "There's something I need to do, but I can't tell you what exactly." I narrowed my eyes at her. She said nothing about needing to do anything earlier. "I just wanted to let you know that you don't have to stay here with me but if you do stay then I'd prefer it if you called me Warrior, not Ivypool."

"Why?" Cloudtail asked her, puzzled.

Ivypool glanced over her shoulder at Rogue before answering. "It's complicated, but the cats here know me as Warrior, so..."

I opened my mouth to speak but another voice beat me to it.

"Excuse me, but would you care to tell me your names?"

Everyone turned and stared at the large ginger tom cat who had spoken. Ivy-Warrior broke the silence first with a laugh. "Everyone, this is Rogue."

"We know who he is," Cloudtail pointed out.

"But I don't know who you are," Rogue blinked innocently.

"Why are you speaking funnily?" I asked him, and he shot me a brief glare. "What?"

Warrior laughed again. "He's trying to be polite. Seriously Rogue, it isn't working," she added.

Rogue shrugged. "Well, it was worth a try. What are your names?"

"I'm Brambleclaw, deputy of ThunderClan, and these are some of ThunderClan's warriors – Cloudtail, Whitewing, Rosepetal and Foxleap," Brambleclaw stepped forward. "Thank you for offering to let us stay in your den."

Rogue shrugged. "Amissa is also staying here with her kits until Oreo gets better and Missy, Rosefur and Storm are staying at least until morning. If you get hungry then you can either go and hunt in the park that we passed – there are a lot of pigeons and a few rabbits and mice there amongst other things – or you can scavenge from Twoleg waste." He then padded away, leaving all of us staring after him in surprise.

"He doesn't like to waste his words, does he?" Cloudtail muttered.

"Rosefur is a strange name for a rogue," Rosepetal commented. I murmured in agreement.

"Maybe she's related to a warrior?" I suggested.

"Or maybe you could just ask her?"

I spun around, bristling in surprise that the rogue had managed to approach undetected. She flicked her tail in amusement. "Who are you?"

"I'm Rosefur," the she-cat replied. She had light blue eyes and reddish fur with a white chest, paws and a bushy tail with a white tip.

"Oh," I glanced down, embarrassed.

"Sorry," Rosepetal added, standing up. "We didn't mean to offend you."

Rosefur just smiled. "I'm used to it, don't worry. Cats gossip a lot around here – this isn't the first time cats have speculated about me."

I looked up eagerly. "So do you have any connection to the Clans?"

"Foxleap, don't be so rude," Warrior joined in our conversation. She glanced at Rosefur. "Sorry about him. He can be insensitive at times."

Rosefur laughed to my surprise. "Toms will be toms," she mewed. "To answer your question... Foxleap, right? Well, my mother was born into the Clans but a fox stole her just before she was apprenticed and, though she escaped, she couldn't find her way back to the clans again so she learned to live rough. When she had me and my brother she gave us both warrior names to remind us of our origins and her birth," she explained.

I was surprised, to say the least. "Oh... You didn't have to tell us," I said awkwardly.

Warrior rolled her eyes at me and stepped forward. "Is that your brother?" she nodded to the tom she and Missy had been travelling with.

Rosefur's eyes clouded. "No, my brother died. That's Storm." For some reason she went quiet and her eyes took on a distant look, as if she was lost in a memory.

"Hey, Rosefur, are you planning on staying here long?" Warrior asked her, trying to distract her.

Rosefur glanced at Warrior gratefully. "I don't know. Missy makes most of the decisions like that."

"You three sound close?" Rosepetal ventured. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Brambleclaw, Cloudtail and Whitewing talking amongst themselves. The other rogues were keeping to themselves as well, mostly crowded around Oreo.

Rosefur's answer brought me back to the current conversation quick enough though.

"We are. Missy and I grew up together, although we're not sisters. When we were fully grown but still young we met Rogue. Needless to say, he played with us," she told us as if that should explain everything.

"You mean... you used to be with Rogue?" Rosepetal voiced my confusion.

Rosefur nodded. "I guess you could say that. Both Missy and I were young and fairly innocent at the time, we didn't realise he was seeing both of us at the same time. When we found out Missy argued with him about it and stormed off. I also blew up at him, but Rogue told me it wasn't his fault I was stupid – he had never actually said anything about loving me, or about me being the only one he was interested in. Rogue is tricky like that. He broke both of our hearts that night, but we recovered quickly. Missy claims she never really cared for Rogue anyway, she was just interested in him because of his looks, and although I used to care about him I quickly realised my mistake. When I meet Rogue now it's like it never happened really – I wouldn't be surprised if he's forgotten all about it."

"How can you be so calm about what happened? If some tom did that to me, I'd hate him," Rosepetal exclaimed.

Rosefur shrugged. "It was a few seasons ago, and it's not like I ever had any real feelings for him. I was naïve and inexperienced. Besides, it was right after that incident that Missy and I met Storm. He helped us both get over it quickly," she explained.

"Why are you telling us this?" Warrior questioned.

Rosefur glanced at her sharply. "You're Warrior, right? Come with me," she said and trotted away, towards the entrance of the den.

Warrior shrugged and got up to follow but I blocked her way. "You're not really going after her are you? It could be a trap," I warned her. We didn't know anything about this cat apart from what she had just told us, and Warrior was just going to follow her?

Rosepetal nodded in agreement. "We don't know if we can trust these cats yet."

Warrior dodged around me, saying, "I know, but I can take care of myself. Besides, she might have something important to tell me."

I watched as she disappeared out of the den and turned to Rosepetal. "Do you think she'll be all right?"

Rosepetal sighed. "I don't know, we'd better go and tell Brambleclaw."

I hesitated. "She won't thank us for telling on her."

When Rosepetal glanced at me her eyes were dark. "Better to have her be angry at us than to have her hurt."

I ducked my head and followed her over to our deputy.

* * *

**Rogue's POV**

Amissa is fretting over Oreo and Missy and Storm are trying to comfort her when I notice Warrior disappearing out of my den. I look around and realise that Rosefur is also missing, and it doesn't take me two seconds to understand what's going on. I slip away quietly and follow Warrior out of the den.

The sun is shining when I appear and I head over to the wall quickly.

When I reach the wall I climb over it quickly and am about to jump down when I hear voices. I jump down the other side carefully and pad along the road until I reach the corner, where I can make out Rosefur's voice.

"Look, Warrior, I've heard cats talking about you, and it's not good. They're saying you're Rogue's new toy and that you've really fallen hard for him. Some of the she cats who live in the barn are taking turns in guessing how long you'll last before he breaks your heart." _Wow, gossip sure spreads fast these days,_ I think to myself.

"I appreciate your concern Rosefur but you don't need to worry about me. I wouldn't fall for Rogue if he was the last tom alive," Warrior replied and I drew in my breath. _Harsh much?_ "I promise you, those she cats don't know what they're talking about. Why do you care anyway?" she adds curiously.

I hear Rosefur sigh. "I've been in your position before, and I just don't want to see another cat hurt because of Rogue. He cares for no-cat but himself. You don't know him like I do – if you did, you would have left with your Clanmates long before now," she warns Warrior.

"I'm sure I'll be fine," Warrior tells her with a yawn. I remember she hasn't slept for ages. She's probably exhausted. "Thanks for the warning though."

"Just... be careful." Rosefur sounds troubled and I roll my eyes. I won't do anything to hurt Warrior... "Hey, where are you going?" Rosefur's alarmed mew makes me prick my ears and creep forward until I can see both of them around the corner. Rosefur is staring across the road with wide eyes and I follow her gaze to Warrior, who is wandering across it.

"Back to the den?" Warrior replies, sounding confused. Her eyes show her exhaustion and I get a bad feeling in my chest.

"No, come back – the den is this way!" Rosefur calls worriedly. I tense when I hear a monster rumbling not far away.

"I..." Warrior mumbles. The monster is getting closer and she isn't moving! I feel my heart speed up and I spring forward, but the monster is already speeding towards us. I pull back as the monster races forwards towards Warrior's form which is pressed to the ground, seeming smaller than usual.

"Warrior!" I yowl, but it's too late. I close my eyes as the monster hits her.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hmm, I wonder how many of you can guess what's going to happen next? Please tell me your thoughts is a review!

I also want to thank everyone who has reviewed (47 reviews, thanks so much guys!), favourited or followed - you all encourage me to keep writing!


	9. A Question of Identity

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Warriors.

Not much to say about this chapter really, apart from I hope it isn't too confusing in the beginning. Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

**~ A Question of Identity ~**

**Ivypool's POV**

I was exhausted and confused, to say the least. I remember talking to Rosefur – or was it Rosepetal? – about something and then trying to walk back to Rogue's den. I didn't get far before I heard a loud, thunderous growling and turned to see a huge Twoleg monster hurtling towards me. I remember my fur standing on end and looking around desperately but everything was hazy and I didn't know what to do or where to run. I was terrified, like I've never been before because my paws were heavy and my brain didn't want to work.

I crouched low to the ground with my eyes squeezed shut but the expected impact never came. Instead I felt something crash into me from the side and I bumped my head against something. From then on, everything went dark.

* * *

The first thing I became aware of as I slowly regained consciousness was the noise. Loud voices grating in my ear and clashing against each other, causing me to flinch away involuntarily. The noise stopped abruptly, and I could almost feel the weight of the stares I was receiving – the owners of the stares remained a mystery until I opened one eye, however.

"She's awake!" some cat cried in excitement and my eye snapped shut, as if that action could shut out the sound.

"Shh!" another cat hissed, but in a quieter voice. "Ivy- Warrior, I mean... Warrior, can you hear us?"

_Of course I can hear you. In fact, I bet every single cat in the Clans back at the lake can hear you,_ is what I wanted to snap. When I opened my jaws and tried to speak, however, the only sound that escaped was a dry, rasping cough. All around me I heard cats start to mumble to each other; their voices merging and fading into the background, lulling me back into darkness.

* * *

My dreams were rushed and confusing. I saw flashes of images and scenes containing cats I didn't recognise and sometimes blood. Each sequence changed too fast to give me any time to make sense of what I was seeing, and when I saw the Twolegplace flash in front of my eyes accompanied my slashing claws and snarling teeth I shivered. I felt myself whimper at the sight until something soft pressed up against me. Warmth spread through me and whomever was lying next to me began whispering in my ear, comforting me and providing me with an anchor to hold on to.

"Don't let go, Ivypool," a male voice hummed in my ear. "Don't lose yourself in the twists and turns of the future." I heard myself promise to never let go and to always be certain of where I was going. The voice soothed me, until the images disappeared and he was all I could hear.

"You're a warrior, don't lose your identity," the voice mewed softly, but with a strange conviction that compelled me to listen.

"Keep sight of your goal, don't waver from the path you choose," it continued.

"Warriors are strong and fight their own battles."

"Always keep in mind that your instinct is the best guide to life that you've got."

"Some problems can be solved by talking, but every problem can be removed if your enemies are too scared to strike against you. Never forget, Warrior."

That was when his voice became slightly darker and held a hint of teasing within it.

"Who are you?"

"Ivypool or Warrior?"

"Clan cat or your own cat?"

"Are you really a warrior, Ivypool?"

"Do you really know who you are?"

"Are you Dovewing's sister? Do you let her define you?"

"Who are you?"

_I am,_ I began to answer, _I'm Ivypool._

"Who are you?"

_No, I'm Warrior..._

"Who are you?"

I was dimly aware of curling myself into a ball and sliding my claws out as I whispered, _Who am I? _In my head.

* * *

"Warrior?"

I twitched an ear as the familiar yet unknown voice interrupted my thoughts. I was still mostly asleep, but the voice refused to go away.

"Warrior, I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm sorry. I pushed you too hard, making you stay awake for so long. I'm used to it, but I guess you're... not," the voice whispered. It was rough-edged but also gentle and quiet. I tried to remember who the owner of the voice was but my brain refused to function properly.

"I really am sorry, and if you wake up I promise to listen to you more. Just... just don't die, okay?"

I felt the darkness of sleep beginning to crowd me once more but I tried to fight it off. Something told me that what this cat (whoever he was) was saying was important, and I needed to hear it, but I couldn't fight it off for long. Just as I slipped back into my sleepy state of oblivion I heard the cat mutter one last thing.

"Who am I kidding?" The voice sounded slightly angry. "Like you would wake up because I asked you not to. Go on then, die if you want to. I don't care. But do it soon if you're going to because I need to know if I have to abandon this den and run away from the wrath of your Clanmates," he hissed bitterly.

His words struck a chord in me and I felt my heartbeat slow. I ceased to breath, listening for the cat to speak again. Through the blood pounding in my ears I only heard one thing, however: the sound of a cat standing up and his pawsteps thudding away from me.

I heaved a deep, shuddering breath and lay still, waiting for sleep to overcome me. This time my sleep was filled with empty spaces and echoing voices calling my name.

* * *

When I next surfaced from sleep my head felt much clearer and I felt much calmer. My dreams quickly faded into the past and dissolved in my memories until they were so far gone that I couldn't remember anything but hazy bits and pieces.

I opened my eyes and yawned loudly, surprised when sunlight flooded my vision temporarily blinding me.

"Ivypool! You're awake! How are you feeling?"

I blinked rapidly and tensed, shocked when two green eyes suddenly peered into my own. They were sparkling in excitement and when they backed away I recognised Foxleap.

"Ivypool?" I muttered to myself. "Oh, er, I'm much better now, thanks." Looking up at Foxleap I shook myself and climbed to my paws. When I wobbled, Foxleap darted forward to help me. He slipped his shoulder under mine and supported me as I found my balance. "Thanks, but I could have managed," I told him. Foxleap stepped away from me and, taken by surprise, I fell right over.

"Sure you could have," he replied, returning my glare with a look of innocence.

I rolled my eyes and stood up slowly. "Where is everyone anyway?" I asked him, looking around the den. Apart from us and the straw which littered the floor it was completely empty.

Foxleap stretched. "I don't know what happened to the other rogues, but Brambleclaw took the rest of the ThunderClan cats out hunting – he practically had to force Whitewing to leave your side, because she refused to let you out of her sight when Rogue and Rosefur brought you back. She was sitting with you for the whole of yesterday, and the lack of exercise was making her irritable. Anyway, I volunteered to stay with you while they were hunting and Rogue also stayed, only he left not long ago after sitting with you for a while," he explained. I nodded and stretched.

After walking around a bit and getting used to walking again I felt much better, and turned to Foxleap who was watching me carefully. "What's wrong?" I asked him, sitting down and beginning to wash myself.

Foxleap gave me a lopsided grin. "Just making sure you're not about to keel over."

I mock-hissed. "I'm not that fragile!"

Foxleap looked away, watching me out of the corner of his eye. "Of course not," he teased.

I took a step towards him, growling playfully. "One more word and you'll find out just how un-fragile I am," I declared.

Foxleap tilted his head as if considering and then opened his mouth slowly and deliberately. "You look like you're about to fall over... again," he told me with a grin.

I dropped into a crouch, feeling the energy gathering in my un-used muscles. "Don't say I didn't warn you," I hissed and leapt at him. He dodged and tried to jump on me as I landed but, remembering the training Hawkfrost had given me, I let myself roll with him, becoming a dead weight that he was forced to support. Taken by surprise Foxleap floundered and I took the chance to slip out of his grasp and pin him down. I must have been weaker than I thought though, because my limbs trembled as Foxleap pushed me away too easily. Not giving up, I charged at him, wobbling slightly, and butted him with my head.

"Owww!" I yowled as pain suddenly erupted in my head.

Foxleap gasped and was at my side in an instant. "I'm so sorry, are you okay? I didn't mean to-" he babbled and I drew my tail over his mouth.

"I'll be fine, but... I don't remember hurting my head...?" I asked him, sitting down weakly. My muscles seemed relieved and the pain in my head was already lessening.

Foxleap sat down next to me. "How much do you remember?" he asked, smoothing down his ruffled fur with his tongue.

"I... I remember following Rosepetal – no, Rosefur – out of the den and talking to her about something, and then being really tired because of my lack of sleep and wandering across a road? And then a monster came and then..." I hesitated, but no memories came to the front of my mind. "The next thing I remember is waking up here."

Foxleap took a deep breath. "Okay, well, after you followed Rosefur, Rosepetal and I were debating whether to follow you or tell Brambleclaw when Rogue slipped out after you. He didn't know we saw him. We waited for you to come back and were just about to go and tell Brambleclaw when Rosefur raced in yowling that a Monster was about to kill you. As you can imagine, that caused quite the uproar. Cloudtail and I had to Stop Whitewing from dashing out of the den before hearing Rosefur out. She told us that in your exhaustion you had wandered across the Thunderpath thinking it was the right way to go. That's when Rogue arrived on scene, but instead of rushing across the road to help you he just sort of froze, staring at you.

"Rosefur had run back here to get help as soon as Rogue appeared but of course it was too late for any of us to do anything then," Foxleap paused before carrying on. "We don't know how it was only your head that was hurt because Rogue refuses to talk about what happened. We think you must have wandered towards the other side of the Thunderpath by yourself and hit your head on the raised path as the Monster rushed by. I don't know how else you could have escaped with only a hurt head for an injury," he finished.

I nodded automatically. "Yeah, that must've been what happened." But I knew that I hadn't moved at all. I had been frozen in the middle of the Thunderpath, transfixed by the Monster's harsh yellow glare. _Some cat pushed me out of the way just in time,_ I thought. _And if it wasn't Rogue, then who was it? _

I sighed and pushed the thought away. Maybe Rogue would tell me what really happened if I could get him alone. Suddenly, another thought occurred to me. "How long was I... asleep for?" I asked Foxleap, tensing.

Foxleap blinked. "A couple of sunrises," he told me. I gasped_. A couple of sunrises? But... how was that possible?_ "You kept muttering in your sleep and then falling silent for long periods of time. Occasionally you would twitch, and I think you woke up a couple of times but not for long," he added.

I stood up and stretched carefully. I felt fine apart from my head, if a little weak, but I was sure I only felt like that because I hadn't moved since two sunrises ago. "Do you know when the others will get back?" I asked, sitting down on my haunches and twisting my head to lap at one of my shoulders where there was a knot in my fur, only to wince when my head protested.

Foxleap gazed at me with worry in his eyes. "Let me help. You should sleep some more anyway, it won't be long until everyone gets back but you need more rest," he told me, leading me back to my makeshift next.

I lay down reluctantly and closed my eyes. Soothed by the rhythmic motion of Foxleap lapping at my fur, it wasn't long before I drifted out of consciousness.

* * *

"And the Warrior recovers," a familiar voice made me open my eyes and stretch. I had been expecting to see the walls of Rogue's den so when a meadow of green grass, a few bushes and a couple of trees met my eyes I was surprised.

"Where am I?" I asked the cat who had spoken, but when I looked around for him I couldn't see him anywhere. I scented the air but only the sweet smell of honeysuckle met my scent glands.

"Over here." The voice sounded amused and I whirled round to see a broad tabby with ice blue eyes watching me.

My eyes widened and I realised I was dreaming. "H-Hawkfrost?"

Hawkfrost dipped his head. "Don't you recognise this place, Warrior?"

I looked around again, recognition flooding my gaze. "This is the place you first offered to train me."

"Is that all it is to you?" Hawkfrost stood up and took a couple of steps closer to me. I hesitated, unsure of what he wanted me to say.

Instead of answering, I changed the topic. "Why did you call me Warrior?"

Hawkfrost's eyes revealed nothing as he observed me. His silent gaze was just beginning to make me uncomfortable when he answered. "Why did Foxleap call you Ivypool?"

"Because Ivypool is my name," I answered immediately. "Warrior is just... a name."

"Warrior is your name as much as Ivypool now," Hawkfrost told me in a level tone. "Both names were given to you by another cat, and both are names you choose to go by. They are both separate parts of your identity, and it is up to you which identity, which name, you will choose in the end." Hawkfrost's words left thoughts swirling around my head in confusion. "But, that is not what I called you here for."

I stared at him dumbly. "It isn't?"

"No. Do you know exactly what happened on the Thunderpath?"

I shook my head slowly. Hawkfrost was acting really weirdly, and I didn't know why.

He didn't seem surprised by my answer. "Well, you'll find out the true version soon – well, when Rogue pulls himself together that is."

"What do you mean? What has anything got to do with Rogue?" I pressed him but Hawkfrost refused to answer my questions.

"You know, in order to recover as fast as possible you need to exercise and build up your strength again," he told me, turning around and walking over to the other side of the meadow.

I narrowed my eyes. I wanted to yell at him, ask him to explain himself, but instead I just nodded. "Yeah?"

Hawkfrost lowered his head and stared at me with calculating eyes. "Attack me."

There was the Hawkfrost I knew – not letting me rest even when I was injured! I sighed mentally with relief and dropped into an offensive position.

* * *

When I woke again I was sore but feeling surprisingly better. My head had hurt at first but Hawkfrost had forced me to ignore the pain and eventually I just ignored it. It helped that he didn't cuff me over the head and instead aimed all his blows towards the rest of my body.

"Oh, thank StarClan you're awake!"

I sat up to see my mother rushing across the den. When she reached my side she began covering me in licks.

"I was so worried that I lost you Ivyp- Warrior, I don't know what I would have done if-"

"It's Ivypool," I cut her off and she stared at me in surprise. "I was being mousebrained earlier. Of course you and my other Clanmates can call me Ivypool. It is my name after all," I explained. Hawkfrost, while being confusing, had also cleared one thing up for me. I could be both Ivypool and Warrior.

Whitewing smiled at me lovingly. "I'm glad. But are you feeling okay? You had quite a nasty bump on your head..."

I nuzzled my mother briefly. "I feel better than when I last woke. Did Foxleap tell you?"

Whitewing nodded and opened her jaws to reply when the scents of my other Clanmates flooded me.

"We thought you would never wake up!" Rosepetal exclaimed.

"How are you feeling?" Brambleclaw asked me.

"You should take it easy," Cloudtail advised.

I assured them all I was okay, but they didn't seem to believe me and instead kept questioning me and telling me how happy they were that I had finally woken up.

I yawned (twice, actually) but they didn't seem to get the hint. "Where's Rogue?" I asked at last, not missing the way Brambleclaw's eyes darkened at the mention of his name.

"He will be back soon," the ThunderClan deputy told me. "But I don't think you should associate yourself with him anymore."

"What?" I felt the hairs on my pelt rising and my eyes flashed.

"Ivypool, it's for the best," Whitewing tried to calm me down. "He's a rogue and doesn't care if you get hurt – look at what listening to him did to you, for StarClan's sake! You nearly died because he exhausted you and then didn't even try to save you from that Monster," she meowed.

I gritted my teeth. "It wasn't his fault, I should have known my limits. You can't blame him for my own mousebrained actions," I said as firmly as I could, but none of my Clanmates seemed to believe me.

I argued with them for a bit longer until Brambleclaw finally made everyone leave me alone so that I could get some more rest.

I lay back down but before I could close my eyes I saw a familiar shape leave the den out of the corner of my eye. My heart began thumping faster as I took a quick look around to make sure no-one was paying any attention to me.

The Clan cats were talking amongst each other in low voices in one corner and the other rogues were also keeping to themselves, so, as quietly as I could, I moved towards the entrance of the den and slipped outside. I checked behind me once to make sure no-one was following me and then set off determinedly with only one thought in mind: To find Rogue and ask him what had really happened.

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**Author's Note: **So what did you think? Were you confused by Ivypool's dreams and all the different cats? I would love to know your thoughts in a review, they really encourage me to write!


	10. StarClan Interferes

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything you recognise from Warriors, but I do own that evil little cat at the end of the chapter...

Sorry this is shorter than normal, but I'm in a rush and won't be able to write for a day or two so wanted to get this up.

Anyway, enjoy.

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**Chapter Nine**

**~ StarClan Interferes ~**

**Normal POV**

Ivypool followed Rogue's scent, careful to keep out of sight of Twolegs where possible, to a small patch of green walled off from the road. It was attached to a neat little Twoleg den and there was a small, spindly tree – she wasn't sure what type of tree it was – in the middle. Rogue was sitting staring at the closed entrance to the Twoleg nest with his tail curled round his paws. There were two raised, identical holes either side of the entrance, filled with some sort of shining ice.

Rogue's shoulders were hunched and she guessed he was staring at the ground. After a moment, Rogue lifted his head but didn't turn around. "I know you're there, Warrior."

Ivypool's eye twitched involuntarily when he said her name but she ignored it and padded forward.

"I... I wanted to know what really happened. I know the monster didn't hit me, but I can't remember anything else," she mewed, sitting down beside him.

Rogue still wasn't looking at her. "Hawkfluff appeared out of no-where and shoved you aside. Somehow he managed to avoid being hit himself. As he pushed you out of the way you hit the raised edge of the path and were knocked unconscious. Then I brought you back to my den," he told her carelessly.

Ivypool frowned. "Hawkfluff? You mean Hawkfrost? He was the one who saved me?"

"Didn't I just say that?" Rogue looked at her, his amber gaze giving nothing away.

"Sorry," Ivypool sighed. "I just... he came to me last night but didn't tell me it was him."

Rogue shook his head. "No he didn't. You slept soundly all night – there was no sign of Hawkfluff or you sneaking out to meet him."

Ivypool winced. _Oops._ "Well, I... Hawkfrost is... erm..." she stuttered. _Oh come on, I'm better at lying than this! Think of something, fast! _She mentally scolded herself. "Hang on, how do you know that I was asleep all night?" she asked quickly.

"I couldn't sleep," Rogue shrugged. "Don't change the subject." His amber eyes seemed to see into the depths of her soul as he stared into her eyes, and Ivypool shivered.

"I... can't tell you," she muttered, tearing her eyes away and staring at her paws. _Way to arouse his suspicions even further, _she thought sarcastically.

Rogue lifted his eyes to the sky.

Ivypool frowned. "You're not going to keep asking?"

Rogue shook his head. "Everyone has secrets. Who am I to press you for yours?" he mewed simply.

"What are you doing out here anyway?" Ivypool wondered aloud.

"Something I shouldn't," Rogue replied.

Ivypool opened her jaws, confused, but then closed them again.

Rogue smiled. "Thinking about the past," he told her.

"Sorry, what?" Ivypool stared at him, not understanding.

Rogue laughed. "You wanted to ask what I was doing that I shouldn't be doing, so I answered you. I'm thinking about the past."

"Oh." Ivypool was silent for a moment. "What's wrong with thinking about the past?"

Rogue stood up and shook his fur out. "I wouldn't expect you to understand," he meowed as he walked away.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ivypool yowled after him as he climbed the wall and jumped back down the other side. There was no reply. She felt her fur pricking in mixed anger and confusion. Rogue was so confusing sometimes, she wondered if she should just leave him alone and go back to the Clans. But she had always been a curious cat, and something within her just refused to let her leave things alone.

* * *

"Brambleclaw."

One of the dark tabby's ears flicked. He had heard that voice once before, but it was so long ago that he couldn't place it.

"Brambleclaw," the voice repeated itself, getting slightly louder.

Brambleclaw twitched in his sleep.

"Brambleclaw..."

The tom in question rolled over in his nest, turning away from the voice. He shivered automatically when he felt the cat's breath on his ear.

"BRAMBLECLAW!"

Brambleclaw jumped up with a startled yowl, his fur on end. "What?" he snapped, turning around with a hiss, only for his anger to melt away and be replaced with confusion when he saw the cat who had woken him. "Bluestar?"

The blue-gray she-cat dipped her head. "You weren't always this heavy a sleeper," she observed.

Brambleclaw sighed. "It's been a hectic few days, with Ivypool narrowly missing being hit by that monster and knocking herself out on the raised path instead, and then not waking up until earlier today."

Bluestar nodded. "Yes, I saw what happened."

"Is there a reason you're visiting me now? Won't the other cats see you?" Brambleclaw asked her.

Bluestar smiled slightly. "You're still dreaming, Brambleclaw. Look, none of the other cats can see us," she told him, flicking her tail around the den. Brambleclaw saw that all the other cats, Clan and rouge alike, were all still asleep. Looking closer, he realised something was missing.

"Where's Ivypool?" he asked.

Bluestar sat down, curling her tail around her paws. "That is what I came to talk to you about. Listen closely," she meowed.

Brambleclaw looked back at his old leader, surprised by the seriousness in her gaze.

"There are dark times ahead for all the Clans, and it is Ivypool's destiny to save the Clans... or let them be destroyed. The path ahead of her is not an easy one, and her choice is the most difficult of all. Not even StarClan can see what will happen," Bluestar's eyes were fixed on Brambleclaw's, and he found himself unable to tear his gaze away as she stared at him intently. "You must let her choose for herself," she hissed.

Brambleclaw blinked. "I don't understand. Why are you telling me this?"

"You need to let Ivypool decide for herself what path she walks. Enforcing her loyalty to ThunderClan will get you nowhere," Bluestar murmured as she began to fade.

"Wait – I don't understand what you want me to do... Bluestar?"

"She needs to decide for herself," Bluestar whispered, her voice taking on an echoing quality.

Brambleclaw's yes widened. "But I-"

"She needs to decide for herself," Bluestar echoed as darkness began to shroud the ThunderClan deputy.

"She needs to decide for herself."

* * *

Ivypool padded back into Rogues den as dawn approached the horizon, and found that no-one seemed to have noticed her absence. She curled up in her nest and was able to nap until the other Clan cats began to wake, the sound of their voices lifting her out of her sleep as well.

"Ivypool?" Whitewing called to her. She sat up in her nest and began to wash herself, busy thinking of what had occurred with Rogue.

"Yeah?" she replied absently, looking around the den for the ginger tabby.

"Good, you're awake. Come on, we're leaving," Whitewing told her, padding over.

"Okay. Wait – what?" Ivypool looked up, startled. "Leaving?"

Whitewing nodded. "We're going back to the Clan. It's not safe here, and this den is unnatural." The white warrior looked around at the straight edges of the nest and shivered.

Ivypool jumped to her paws. "But I'm not ready! I... Can't we stay for just a few more sunrises?" she asked.

Over by the entrance, the other Clan cats were gathering, with Brambleclaw overseeing them.

Whitewing blinked at her sympathetically. "I understand if you don't quite feel up to travelling yet, but we really need to get back to the Clan. Besides, the longer we stay in the Twolegplace, the more chances there are for other... accidents to happen," she explained, her eyes hardening as she said 'accidents', leading Ivypool to realise that her mother blamed Rogue for her injury.

Ivypool just stared at her mother, her thoughts reeling. But when she opened her mouth, the words refused to be spoken. "It wasn't Rogue's fault," she muttered at last.

Whitewing sighed. "Come on, let's get you home," she murmured, placing her tail on Ivypool's shoulder and leading her over to the other Clan cats.

"About time," Cloudtail muttered when they reached him.

"You're ready?" Brambleclaw gazed at Ivypool, a question in his amber eyes.

Ivypool hesitated.

"You're leaving already?" a rough mew cut into their conversation, and Ivypool looked up to see Rogue standing at the entrance to the den.

"No, I-" Ivypool started to speak but Rogue cut her off.

"Good," Rogue turned around and padded back outside, disappearing into the Twolegplace.

Ivypool stared after him, misery forming in her eyes.

Brambleclaw observed her closely as she gazed after the ginger rogue. _She needs to decide for herself._ Bluestar's words echoed in his head. "Do you want to stay here?" he asked the young warrior, who looked up at him in surprise.

She nodded without hesitation. "Yes. But I don't want to leave the Clan, either..."

Brambleclaw shook his head. "You don't have to. There will always be a place in ThunderClan, whenever you decide you're ready to come back," he reassured her. To the rest of the ThunderClan cats, he added, "Come on, it's time to go."

Gratitude flooded Ivypool's gaze, and she dipped her head to Brambleclaw respectfully.

"What? We can't leave her here!" Whitewing exclaimed, staring at Brambleclaw. "I'll stay with her."

"No. You're needed back at camp, with Birchfall and Dovewing," Brambleclaw told her.

"Well, she can't stay here by herself. Anything could happen," Foxleap interjected. "I'll stay with her. I promised Dovewing I couldn't come back without her anyway," he offered.

Brambleclaw hesitated, but then nodded. "If that's all right with Ivypool, then you can stay."

Ivypool nodded. She would have preferred to stay by herself but if she had to have one of the Clan cats stay with her, then – no offence to her mother – she would prefer it to be Foxleap rather than Whitewing who wouldn't leave her alone for a moment.

Whitewing sighed in defeat as Brambleclaw lifted his head. "Then it's settled. Foxleap and Ivypool will remain here. Now it is time to return to ThunderClan," he meowed and began leading the other cats out of the den.

"Goodbye Ivypool. Always know that I love you," Whitewing mewed, pressing her nose to her daughter's cheek.

"I love you too," Ivypool watched her mother leave, before turning to Foxleap. "I guess it's just us now."

Foxleap sat down and scratched his ear. "Yep. So what do cats do all day around here anyway?"

* * *

If anyone had bothered to look up, into the rafters of the den, they would have seen two glowing, blue-gray orbs fixed hungrily on the back of Ivypool's head. "Oh, you'll soon find out what cats do for fun around here," the owner of the eyes cackled to itself. "But I'm certain you won't enjoy it," it added menacingly, sharpening its claws on a hard wooden beam.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Anyone want to take a guess at who the cat at the end was? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chapter in a review *hint hint*!


	11. War Will Come On a Raven's Scarred Wing

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Warriors, or anything you recognise - that belongs to Erin Hunter. unicorns-are-fluffy owns Oreo, Rose, Amissa and Boon, and I thank Peperpaw for letting me use the name Raven *insert evil laugh*. DawnflowerMoonshinestarchase gave me the names Wind and Spike, and I owe a lot to kawaii-nyan-kitty who recently left fanfiction. She gave me her OC Missy to use in the story as Ivypool's main female rival, and when she comes more into play I hope kawaii-nyan-kitty is pleased with the way I write her. I would also like to thank The Darkness Inside Me for Rosefur and Storm, another faithful friend and reviewer. Oh, and I must thank the last Guest to review chapter Nine (or technically chapter ten) for the use of Juno. He certainly came in useful this chapter, thanks :)

So it may seem like I don't own a whole lot in this story, but I would like to remind you that **I do own** the plot, Rogue and a certain evil cat who is planning something bad.

Oh, yeah, and the only person who guessed correctly who the cat at the end of the last chapter was was BlackTopaz19, but The Song of the Felines was close with her answer, and Sarnia Oblivion got it right with his second guess. I want to thank everyone who reviewed and tried to guess, and so as my thank you, here is the next chapter!

**IMPORTANT:** This will definitely be my last update until the weekend at least, maybe for a couple of weeks, I don't know. I start school again tomorrow and it's my most important GCSE year, so I need to study really hard for my exams which means less time for writing. I'll write when I can, but that might not be too often, so don't get your hopes up for another chapter really soon.

Oh, and you might think the title sounds familiar. That's because it does. It's kind of the opposite of 'Peace will come on a Dove's gentle wing' - you know, that prophecy about Dovewing? Yeah, well I felt it was appropriate. I'm not entirely sure whether I can claim ownership of the title or not, but this author's note has gone on for long enough, so here is the next chapter at last!

Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

**~ ****War Will Come On a Raven's Scarred Wing **~

**Normal POV**

After Ivypool had spent a few minutes telling Foxleap about the huge Twoleg den – the barn – where all of the Twolegplace cats gathered at night, Foxleap immediately wanted to go and check it out, but Ivypool stopped him because she didn't know what happened there during the day. They were in the middle of having a practice training session (Ivypool was determined not to let Foxleap win this time) when they were interrupted by a cat Ivypool had forgotten all about.

"Warrior! You're still here!" a young voice squeaked in surprise.

Ivypool rolled away from Foxleap and picked herself up off the floor. Turning to face the entrance to the den she hardly had time to catch her breath before the young black-and-white tom was hurtling towards her. He started speaking just as he pounced on her, pinning her to the ground.

"Rogue said you'd gone back to the Clans with those other nasty cats and I felt terrible because you saved my life and I never got a chance to thank you and I'm really sorry if it was Missy or one of the other Twolegplace cats who made you want to leave and I'm sure they didn't mean it and I'm really glad you're still here and I want to thank you so much for saving my life!" he burst out, speaking so fast his words all blurred together. He said all of that in one breath, so he was then forced to gulp in breaths of air.

Ivypool just lay there, shocked. "Oreo?" she mewed at last.

"Yes?" Oreo looked down at her eagerly.

"Would you mind letting me get up?" Ivypool asked, amused as Oreo's eyes widened and he quickly scrambled backwards.

"Sorry!" he squeaked.

Ivypool just smiled. "It's good to see you too – I'm glad you recovered," she told him. Looking past him she noticed his mother, Amissa, and his two siblings entering the den. They also looked surprised to see her,

"Thanks to you," Oreo told her, his eyes shining with admiration. "If you hadn't been there that red cat would have killed me!"

Ivypool blinked, surprised. "Foxleap wouldn't have-" she began, only to be cut off by Amissa.

"Oh, dear, I'm sorry if he's bothering you," Amissa tutted as she trotted forwards. "He just ran back here as soon as Rogue told us you had left."

Ivypool's ears pricked. "That's okay, he wasn't bothering me. He's just a little over-enthusiastic, is all. But... you've seen Rogue?"

"Yes," Amissa nodded distractedly. "We met him out hunting in the park... Oh! And I also wanted to thank you, properly I mean, for saving my kit's life and also for persuading Rogue to come and help us. Really, thank you ever so much..." the she-cat mewed, but she sounded distant, as if she was thinking of something else. "No, we really must be going. Goodbye Warrior. Come on kits, time to go." She turned around and began herding her kits towards the entrance.

"But we didn't get to talk to Warrior!" Boon protested as Ivypool stared after them. The fur on the back of her neck pricked as she realised something wasn't right with the way Amissa was acting.

"Yeah, she saved me too and I never even got to meet her!" Rose complained.

But Amissa was having none of it as she hustled her kits out of Rogue's den.

"Bye Warrior!" all three of them chorused before they were out of sight.

Ivypool was still in shock from how fast everything had happened. Something definitely wasn't right...

"Looks like someone's got a fan club," Foxleap teased, reminding her that he was still there.

Ivypool shook her head and turned back to face him. "Yeah... that was really strange though," she commented. "Did Amissa seem a bit... off to you?"

Foxleap shrugged. "You mean the kit's mother? I don't know, I guess." He padded closer to her and flicked a piece of straw off her shoulder with his tail. "You're covered in dust and straw," he told her.

Ivypool looked down at herself and wrinkled her nose. "That'll be fun to get off," she sighed, and then looked back up at Foxleap. His pelt was much cleaner than hers.

"It sure will," Foxleap agreed smugly, also looking down at his own clean fur.

Glancing around the den, Ivypool spotted a particularly dusty corner and a gleam suddenly entered her eye. "But I don't think I'll be the only one to enjoy the experience of a dry, dusty tongue."

Foxleap narrowed his eyes. "What do you m-" he began, only to yelp in surprise when the silver and white she-cat suddenly leaped towards him and bowled him over. They landed in the really dusty patch and Ivypool made sure to wrestle him on the ground until he realised what she was doing. "I won't be getting a dry tongue tonight if you can't catch me!" he wriggled out of her grasp and sprinted across the den with Ivypool in close pursuit.

Their game of chase continued for a few minutes longer until Ivypool finally cornered her denmate and forced him to wrestle her on the dusty ground.

"Ha, looks like I win," Ivypool hissed triumphantly in Foxleap's ear as she pinned him down.

Foxleap stared up at her defiantly. "I'm not giving up yet," he warned through gritted teeth as he struggled to throw his opponent off, but moons spent training in the Dark Forest had strengthened Ivypool's muscles and she stood firm, staring confidently down at Foxleap.

"You sure about that?" she checked when he couldn't get free. Foxleap lay still, and for a moment all she could hear was his breathing – fast and slightly heavy after their mock fight. She found herself drawn to Foxleap's eyes as he gazed up at her while catching his breath. They were a mesmerising green, and reminded her of the forest in Leaf-green.

"Fine, I concede," Foxleap admitted at last, his words somewhat breathy. He too was staring into Ivypool's dark blue eyes, held captivated by the beauty of them.

For a few long seconds, both cats simply gazed at each other. Who knows what might have happened next if Rogue hadn't entered the den at that precise moment, interrupting them.

Startled by the noise of Rogue's arrival – his claws clattering on the stone floor and his scent drifting towards them – Ivypool grew hot under her pelt with embarrassment and hastily scrambled off Foxleap.

"S-see? I told I could beat you," Ivypool said quickly, her voice coming out louder than she had meant it to as she turned to face Rogue.

He carried a dead pigeon in his jaws and was staring at them with an unfathomable expression. "I thought you left with your Clanmates," he meowed calmly as Foxleap also got to his paws.

Ivypool glanced at Foxleap. "I wanted to stay here – I have a feeling I'm not supposed to go back to the Clans... not yet, at least," she explained, trying to flatten her fur and stop it bristling with embarrassment.

Rogue looked unimpressed with their answer. "Well I hope you don't plan on staying here – I have my own guests to entertain," he told them, dropping his prey on the ground.

"But you said we were welcome to stay as long as we wanted to," Foxleap protested, coming to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ivypool, who immediately took a step to the side so their pelts weren't brushing. She told herself it was because she didn't want Rogue to think they were trying to threaten him by making it even clearer that there were two of them and only one of him. Foxleap didn't seem to question her movements though as his gaze was fixed on Rogue.

Rogue simply shrugged, swinging his head around to look at the entrance to the den as they heard cats approaching from outside. "Times change," he meowed in a hard voice.

Ivypool and Foxleap stared at him in disbelief. "Where are we supposed to stay then?"

Three cats padded into the den, each carrying a small piece of fresh-kill.

"Not my problem," Rogue told them before turning towards his 'guests'.

Ivypool studied the three newcomers and realised she recognised them. "It's Rosefur, Storm, and Missy," she murmured to Foxleap, not really surprised.

"Who's that?" Foxleap muttered in her ear as a fourth cat followed the other three in. He was a full grown ginger and white tom whom Ivypool didn't recognise, so she simply shook her head in confusion.

Rogue also appeared surprised by the fourth cat's appearance. "Juno," he greeted the tom in a cool voice. "I didn't expect to see you so far from the Alley, and in here of all places." Was it just Ivypool reading too much into the situation or was there a hard edge to Rogue's voice as he addressed the tom?

"Relax Rogue, I said he could come," Storm flicked his tail as he settled down to eat his scrawny finch.

Juno simply twitched an ear. "It was Warrior I came to see," he meowed. Ivypool froze as every cat in the den turned to stare at her.

"Me? Why?" Ivypool asked but Rogue padded in front of her, blocking her from Juno's view.

"I thought I told you to leave," he growled at the two Clan cats.

Ivypool bared her teeth. "Since when did I listen to you? You're not my leader," she growled back.

Foxleap eyed the rising hairs on Rogue's pelt and touched his tail to her shoulder. "Maybe we should go; I'm sure we can find somewhere else to stay," he said in an attempt to calm her.

Rogue glanced at Foxleap swiftly. "Scared to fight me?" he challenged, making the hairs on Foxleap's own pelt rise in anger.

"Never!" Foxleap spat, glaring. "But it would be five on two – an unfair fight. I'm no mousebrain," he added.

Juno looked between the two Clan cats with interest. "Four on two," he corrected the red-pelted warrior. "I didn't come here to fight."

Rogue's glare sharpened and he took a few steps towards Foxleap and Ivypool. "I told you to leave, now." His voice was stone cold, and fury sparked in his hard amber eyes.

Ivypool glared right back at Rogue. "You can't order us around!" turning to Juno, she added, "then what _did_ you come here for?"

Juno gazed at her evenly. "I came to see if the rumours were true."

"Rumours? What rumours?" Ivypool asked quickly.

Juno shrugged and licked a paw, drawing it over an ear. "Raven has been getting reports from various cats about a newcomer in the Twolegplace, so he sent me with a couple of others, Wind and Spike, to find out which rumours were true and which were just that – rumours. Word is going round that you battled Stripes and won, humiliated some she-cats because you could, scared some kits senseless, fought off a whole pack of dogs single-pawed, and..." here, Juno cast a sly glance in Rogue's direction, "captured the heart of the untameable Rogue. Oh, and also that you have an invisible cat friend who advises you in battle." He sat back on his haunches to finish grooming his face. "See, most of those are completely ridiculous – that you beat Stripes, fought off a pack of dogs and have an invisible cat friend that advises you in battle is complete thistle-rot, but that you humiliated some she-cat and scared some kits I can believe. It remains to be seen whether Rogue really has fallen for you or whether that, too, was merely a rumour," Juno informed Ivypool nonchalantly with another sly glance at the bristling ginger tom.

"It's rumour, Juno. Like I would ever willingly give my heart to another," Rogue hissed scornfully. "You know what cats are like with their gossip."

Ivypool switched her gaze back to Rogue, and couldn't help but feel a prick of hurt at his words. She felt that somewhere in the sentence he had just spoken, there was a hidden barb aimed directly at her.

"We shall see," Juno purred. "But for now, Warrior and her companion must accompany me to Raven's ally – he wishes to meet with them himself." The ginger-and-white tom stood and padded towards the entrance of Rogue's den. Just before he reached it, he paused to wait for them to catch up.

Both clan cats stayed where they were. "Who does he think he is, ordering us about like that?" Foxleap directed the question towards Rogue, who looked at them with contempt in his eyes.

"Juno is one of Raven's guard. Raven is the... leader, if you like, of the Twolegplace. No cat comes and goes without raven knowing about it. He usually doesn't care much about the lower cats, he only pays attention to his guard, the cats who hunt for him in return for protection, his second in command, and any cat who causes trouble or a disturbance," Rogue told them in an expressionless tone.

Ivypool looked at Juno. "We're not interested in meeting with this 'Raven'. We just want to get on with our lives in peace," she meowed in the calmest voice she could, forcing her fur to lie flat.

Juno's whiskers twitched in amusement. "What makes you think you have a choice?"

Foxleap stepped forward, glaring. "Raven may be your leader but he's not ours – you can't force us to come with you," he growled.

Juno simply looked at Rogue and the other three cats in the den who had been eating their fresh-kill while listening in on the conversation.

"Juno, please, they won't cause any more trouble if you just let them go," Rosefur began, but Juno gave her a sharp look.

"Are you questioning me, and therefore indirectly questioning Raven?" he asked her smoothly.

"N-no, but-" Rosefur shook her head quickly.

Juno nodded in satisfaction. "So you will obey me and therefore Raven when I tell you and your... friends to escort these two outsiders to Raven?" he checked.

Rosefur looked at her paws. "I will, but I still think-"

"Good. Now come on, there is little time to spare," Juno snapped, watching with a silent gaze as Rosefur, Storm and Missy all padded over to Ivypool and Foxleap, and began herding them out of the den.

"Get off me!" Ivypool growled, snapping her teeth a millimetre away from Storm's whiskers when he nudged her to hurry her up. She lifted her head to look back at Rogue as she was being hustled out of the den, and her deep blue eyes met with his clear amber ones. Rogue then bounded forward, brushing past them on his way out of the den.

"I don't tell cats what to do without good reason," Rogue hissed at her, but his voice bore no vicious undertone; only... was it regret? But Rogue had jumped over the wall and was gone before Ivypool could really think about it.

"Hmph," Juno shot a quick glance after Rogue but didn't stop walking. "Good riddance."

As the rogues forced Ivypool and Foxleap to follow Juno down the streets, none of them meeting the Clan cats in the eye, Foxleap muttered in Ivypool's ear, "You know, it might not have been a bad idea to listen to Rogue after all."

Ivypool just gazed hopelessly back at Foxleap. "You think?"

They were being herded through the Twolegplace, each side blocked by a cat, where anyone could see them; and indeed, many cats did gather to take a look at the poor cats who were being dragged off to see Raven this time.

As Ivypool looked around the streets they passes, she saw one cat crouched on a low wall staring at her hungrily, but with a tinge of satisfaction in her blue-gray eyes.

"You!" Ivypool gasped, immediately realising where some of the rumours about her had come from... '_humiliating some she-cats just because you could'_, Ivypool repeated Juno's words to herself. _Yeah, right._ I'm in trouble for doing nothing wrong, and it's all her fault. Ivypool's eyes narrowed. _Well, if they expect me to go down without a fight, then they've got another thing coming._ She unsheathed her claws and raised her eyes to the sky, letting the sun reflect off of them. She gave a slight smile, and continued walking to what she and Foxleap assumed would be the end of them.

* * *

"Here we are," Juno halted outside a long, dark, shadowy alleyway that stank of rotten fish and crowfood. There were high stone walls running either side of the alley, and the end of the alley disappeared into darkness.

"Your leader lives down here?" Foxleap choked over the smell.

Missy gave the reddish tom an eye roll. "This is the visitors entrance," she told him as if explaining to a kit how hunting worked. "Raven lives on the other end of this alley, in a luxury den. But you won't get to see that, because Raven will be waiting in the Brick-Dump for you."

"Brick-Dump?" Ivypool echoed skeptically. "What's that?"

"Walk down there and you'll find out," Missy grinned. "Go on, we don't have all day."

Ivypool sighed and, taking a deep breath (and not letting it go until she reached the end of the ally) she plunged headfirst into the darkness with the other cats hard on her paws. Juno had already gone on ahead, presumably to forewarn Raven.

When she emerged into the clearing, she saw shy it was called the Brick-Dump. It was a fairly large clearing and would have been spacious too, if not for the mounds of broken bricks scattered throughout it. Glancing at the wall to her left, she realised there were only two entrances/exits. The one she had used, and one accessibly by climbing over piles of bricks.

"Do the cats actually live here?" Foxleap muttered scornfully, raking his eyes over the heads which were popping up all over the clearing, some from the strangest of places like right in the middle of a brick-mound.

"No, but they spend a lot of time here, especially Raven's chosen guard. Look, Raven will be here soon, and he'll explain everything," Rosefur assured Ivypool. But the silver and white tabby she-cat was not fooled into sheathing her claws.

"Well, well, well, what have we here? A couple of troublemakers, perhaps? Or maybe a couple of mischievous miscreants? But, no, what is that I smell? It cannot be the scent of Clan cats," sneered a voice from off to the left of the Brick-Dump. Ivypool and Foxleap both looked round until their eyes settled on the lithe figure of a completely black cat with dark eyes and sharp, unsheathed claws, standing atop one of the larger brick piles and staring down at them malevolently.

The instant Ivypool set eyes on him, the cat she knew must be Raven, she gasped as Hawkfrost's voice suddenly filled her ear, full of warning.

"If the Lone One does not stop it,

And the Fox does not yield to it;

War will come on a Raven's scarred wing,

And sweep away the hope of the Clans,

Leaving their light to ebb away in darkness."

Ivypool looked around wildly, shocked by the prophecy that had just spouted from the lips of the Dark Forest cat. But she saw nothing; only the cold smirk on the face of the cat named Raven.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Okay, okay, I know you guys all wanted a romantic moment between Ivypool and Rogue, and I gave you a romantic moment between Ivypool and Foxleap, but please don't kill me for that. I don't believe Ivypool is the type of cat to go rushing into a relationship with a cat she doesn't entirely trust, and since she's known Foxleap since... well, her whole life really, I think she's more likely to let a 'romantic moment' happen between then than she would if it was between her and Rogue. What about Hawkfrost, do I hear you say? Erm... I'll deal with him next chapter.

Ooooh yeah, can any of you guess what's up with Amissa? And Raven - HA! This story is about to get a whole lot more interesting, I can tell you. Who can guess what Raven's role in the story is going to be? (Okay maybe that question was a bit far-fetched... he could have a MILLION roles in the story if I wanted him to. So you don't have to answer that.) Oh, and there is a reason why the prophecy doesn't rhyme yeah okay I'm not good at rhyming but there's another reason too. I guess you'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out what it is though!

I just love the name Raven. Yup! Seriously, it's a great name :D

ANYWAYS, please review! ... Please... Please...?


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